The Cottage
by Professor Chrystal-Snape
Summary: Severus and Hermione have been enjoying daily battle of wits for the past year but their antics have enticed Albus to interfere in an effort to have the two stubborn professors admit their true feelings for one another. Will his plan work or will they be pushed further apart than they were before? AU, OOC, Fluffy. Mature readers only please - rated M for a reason.
1. How I love to Loathe you

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual and powerful equal.

I will warn you that this story, like all my others will be of an adult nature. There will scenes of an erotic nature later on in this story so go no further if you are offended by fics with sexual references.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

* * *

**Chapter One – Oh how I love to loathe you!**

"You are an absolute prick, Severus Snape!" She shrieked, half tempted to throw the bowl of lemon drops on the desk in front of her straight into his sneering face.

"Better a prick than a bitch of enormous proportion, Granger!" He spat back.

"A bitch? That's rich coming from you, you over grown, greasy git!"

"Oh ouch, my heart breaks at the childish names you are coming out with tonight!"

"Me? Childish! I have done nothing but give you respect and I have tried to be friendly to you since I joined the staff here but no, just because you hate Gryffindor House so much, you won't allow yourself to be nice to me!"

"I do not hate Gryffindor house, Miss Granger..." He started but was interrupted by Hermione growling, "_Professor Granger_!"

Severus merely raised an eyebrow and pursed his lips, "My apologies, _Professor_ Granger. I do not hate Gryffindor house...I hate all the stupid little nit wits who inhabit it's good name. Why would I want to be friendly to you? The Sainted Gryffindor bloody Princess!"

Hermione growled loudly in the back of her throat and threw her hands up into the air in exasperation. "Insufferable man!"

_She is such a beauty when she gets annoyed like this._ Severus heard a voice in the back of his mind but quickly buried that thought deep down for analysis later. There was _no_ way he was going think about how beautiful she was during an argument, he would lose concentration far too easily if he let his mind concentrate on more _carnal _thoughts.

A pair of twinkling blue eyes followed the argument with avid interest, following back and forth as insult after insult was spat at their opponent like some angry badminton match.

The name calling went on like this for another good ten minutes before the highly amused Headmaster reluctantly stopped the squabbling between his two youngest professors with a raised hand.

"That is enough. Now, both of you sit down and be quiet please. As much as I find this little show between the two of you entertaining, it is my turn to talk." Dumbledore said quietly and calmly.

Hermione took in a large breath to calm herself, slowly nodded and took her seat as asked, as did Snape. Her chest was heaving with each intake of breath as she desperately tried to slow down the rapid beating of her heart. She thought for a moment she saw Snape's eyes on her breasts as he took his seat but inwardly snorted to herself when he then looked into her eyes with such heated hatred that she almost recoiled on the spot.

_Severus Snape does not look at women that way. Stop being so bloody silly._ She told herself, ignoring the slight excitement she could feel in her stomach at the thought of Severus Snape finding anything about her attractive.

Her thoughts were interrupted as the Headmaster stood and began to address them both.

"I have noticed over this past year the animosity between you both, my two youngest and most brilliant professors and I must say it saddens me to see it. You have both had hard lives thus far; Severus we all know the risks and sacrifices you undertook during both Wizarding Wars and Hermione, we know the risks and tortures you endured along with the brilliance you showed in assisting Harry to defeat Voldemort. You would think that, if anything, you two would be at least civil to one another? Perhaps even become friends…"

Hermione snorted and rolled her eyes, forgetting herself. She noticed both the men in the room looking at her disapprovingly and she flushed crimson.

_Yes, she is definitely pretty when she's flustered_. Severus head mused. He swiftly shook his head as though trying to clear the thought away, knowing that it merely looked as though he were shaking his head at Granger's childish outburst.

"I apologise, Albus." She mumbled, her gaze fixed on the slate tiles on the floor. Dumbledore's eyes twinkled for a moment before turning serious.

"I do not, and I mean this includes you Severus so I do hope you are paying attension, want to see this sort of behaviour continuing between the both of you, otherwise I will be forced to take action to rectify this problem once and for all. You both know my character enough now to know that my warnings should be heeded."

Severus looked as though he were about to explode and Hermione could be seen gritting her teeth and clenching her jaw, biting back another sarcastic retort.

"Alright, Albus! You have my word that I will try much harder to be civil to Severus and stay out of his way. Although I want it noted that I tried to be nice to him from the beginning and he basically told me to go and get stuffed!" Hermione huffed.

"Nice to me? When? Was this before or after you gaped at my disgusting snake bite scar the moment you entered this castle on your _glorious_ return? Or perhaps after you had your little 'Return to Hogwarts' Party in your quarters and invited the entire staff but did not see fit to invite me?" Severus's eyes were hard as he looked at her, but his voice sounded softer and quite vulnerable, shattering his stone cold exterior; the hurt twinkled in his gaze for a mere second before disappearing and hardening completely. Hermione felt her anger dissipate and her heart clench.

"Severus, I honestly did not think you would want to come. We were never close as teacher and student…I didn't think you would want to be there. I would have loved to have you there. I swear."

Her sincere and beautiful hazel eyes searched his, begging him to believe her. Severus felt himself being drawn closer to her body as she looked into his eyes as though she were a siren calling him to her. But in usual Severus style, his mind seemed to wake up and give a mental slap before anything happened. He jerked away from her roughly, a hateful sneer plastered on his face yet again.

"No, Granger. I have been an outcast my whole life so do not think your bleeding heart Gryffindor act will wash with me. I do not care for your company, your opinion or your pity!" He turned to Albus, rage evident on his features. "I will be civil when I need to be, do not expect me to be her friend. I mean it Albus, do not push me too far because you to know what I am capable of. Good evening." He nodded to his boss and swept out of the room without a second glance at Hermione.

She looked tearful as sat wringing her hands and biting her bottom lip, "I really did want him there, Albus. You know what he's like…he…he never liked me. He never could tolerate me very much while I was his student, I didn't think he would come that night, so I never asked him. To be honest, I just didn't want the humiliation of his rejection. I would have loved if we could have been friends but it's obvious that he hates me now. What is the point in trying?"

Albus took the seat next to her and held her hand, "Severus is a complicated young man, Hermione. All I would say is, do not force him into being your friend. Be civil to him, show him respect and kindness as I know you do already. You will just need to get in touch with your more Slytherin side if you ever hope of gaining his trust to become acquaintances, if not friends." He grinned.

"Oh I don't think I have a Slytherin side, Albus." She gave him a small smile.

"Says the girl who lured Dolores Umbridge into the Forbidden Forest and watched her being taken away by Centaurs…"

Hermione grinned a wicked grin at the memory, "I will try and understand him. I would like to be his friend, I really would. He is the only person besides yourself and Minerva who I can hold an intellectual conversation with. He is brilliant but he just winds me up like no one else can and I sort of like arguing with him."

"It is nice when you find someone who is equally intelligent as you, isn't it? It makes arguments much more fun… having an opponent who is just as passionate and clever as you are. That's how Minnie and I started off." He chuckled as he heaved himself off the chair. "Now, I hope this is the last time I will have to speak to you and Severus about such negative things. He needs a friend, Hermione, and I think you are just the perfect candidate for the job."

Hermione stood and flattened out the creases in her gown, "We will see, Headmaster. We will see. Good evening."

A small greying cat prowled from behind the Headmaster's desk and wrapped itself around his ankles.

"Feel free to transform, Minnie. The coast is clear."

A few seconds later, his wife stood before him.

"They really do want one another, don't they? But is it the real deal?" She smirked.

"Oh yes, it's obvious. Who would have thought the King of Slytherin and the Gryffindor Princess are destined to be together? If only they could get past the anger and bitchiness, they would see the attraction they have for one another." Albus took his wife into his arms, kissing her on the crown of her head.

"Give it time, love. Usually in cases such as these, things need to come to a head before true feelings are realised."

Albus eyes twinkled like disco balls, "I will see how they get on for the next few weeks and if things do not improve. I will have to…intervene."

Minerva shook her head and rolled her eyes, "You, my darling husband, are a meddling old fool. Why not leave them to find each other naturally?"

Albus chuckled, "We are dealing with two of the most stubborn and powerful magical beings in the universe, Minnie. They would either ignore one another all their days or they will hex each other into oblivion rather than admit they were both being too stubborn to see the love they have for one another. This situation is different to what we experienced; we were not as broken or as stubborn. These two just need a little push in the right direction."

"Whatever you say, my love. You do know best, after all." Minerva replied, the sarcasm thick in her voice.

"So glad you admit it after all these years together. See, miracles _can_ happen." He laughed and it was not long before Minerva joined him in a chuckle.

* * *

Meanwhile, Severus sat in his quarters nursing a small glass of fire-whiskey mulling over the events of the past day. He admitted that the whole 'anything you can do, I can do better' game with Hermione had begun to come to a head in the past week and it was probably a good thing that Albus had stepped in when he did, lest he end up grabbing her pretty little body and shut her up by putting that luscious mouth of hers to good use.

He had to admit that he loved getting her so angry and worked up; it was the most fun he had experienced in…_ever_.

She was his intellectual equal and beautiful to boot, what man would not enjoy being the centre of such a gorgeous young witch for a few hours a day?

_Not that she would ever look at me like that, of course._ He thought with a sad smile.

Yes, he had came to the understanding with himself that Hermione would never find him attractive in any sense other than intellectually, not that he ever expected that she would, but that did not necessarily mean he could not have fun with her within the weird relationship they did have.

Truthfully, he would rejoice in having her as a friend but his pride and public persona made it difficult. Perhaps one day he would be able to be his true self with her but until that monumental day, he would enjoy her company in the same way he had been during the past year; basically pulling her pig-tails like a school boy in order to conceal his true feelings for her.

He thought back to their argument today with a chuckle, he had to admit that his prank was rather cruel but oozed of pure genius.

* * *

_A/N: well guys, here we are, my brand spanking new story. I do hope you will enjoy this...I am rather excited about this one. Please review, it only takes a minute so please...PRESS THAT BUTTON :-)_


	2. Let the Games Begin

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual and powerful equal.

I will warn you that this story, like all my others will be of an adult nature. There will scenes of an erotic nature later on in this story so go no further if you are offended by fics with sexual references.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

Ps – With the recent crack down on EROTICA on fan fiction, I will be uploading my stories on Ashwinder to be safe. My pen name is Professor Chrystal.

_Earlier that day…_

Severus swept into the Great Hall with his usual flourish of robes and a familiar sneer on his face as he made his way to the Staff table for breakfast. He was disappointed, but secretly giddy, to see that the only seat left vacant at the table was one next to Hermione Granger, Charms Mistress. He smirked inwardly as he thought of the reaction she would give if she ever found out he had put a spell on the staff dinner table so that no matter where she sat in the Great Hall, the staff would be unable to sit on both sides of her as it would look as though the seat next to her was already occupied. It was a confundus charm of sorts, one he had concocted himself while trying to figure out a way to get close to her without looking as though it was an attempt on his part to get to know the young witch. He had to admit to himself that this was one of his more brilliant ideas.

As he approached the dais, the pretty professor did not even blink in his direction; her nose was buried in a book while her small hand stirred her morning coffee. Quite put out that she had not even acknowledged his presence, he leant over her shoulder in his most intimidating manner and snorted at the utter tripe she was reading.

He saw her stiffen and suck in a deep breath as she closed her eyes, which made the swell of her breasts rise beautifully, and slowly turned to face him. He felt his pulse quicken as her beautiful and angry amber eyes connected with his.

"Is there a problem, Severus?" She asked in a forced and sweet tone, clearly exasperated by his presence and already preparing herself for the onslaught that was sure to follow.

"No problem at all, Miss Granger. I am merely surprised that _a supposedly_ intelligent young woman such as you would read such tosh as _Viyelo Marconi's theory on Love Binding Spells_. Planning on ensnaring some poor bloke with a binding spell are we? Well, I must admit…I can see why you would need to resort to such drastic measures to have a man fulfil your needs. My, my we _must_ be getting desperate, Miss Granger." He sneered, jabbing abruptly at his scrambled eggs. His taunting making himself jealous at the thought of any other man with his hands on her exquisite form.

"And I am shockingly surprised Snape, that a _supposedly _intelligent man such as you cannot get it into his thick skull that I am a professor here and should be addressed as such. I am _Professor_ Granger, not Miss Granger. I was not aware that it was such a hard instruction for you to follow, I understand with old age our minds are not what they always used to be but come on! You are what? 43 now? Maybe Poppy should have a look at you; make sure you are not in the early stages as senile dementia. A man of your advanced years can never be too careful of those things. What next? Shitting your pants and churning out stories that begin with the line '_when I was a young boy_…'" She retorted, taking a sip of her sweet tea with a smirk.

_Impertinent little chit. I'll show you exactly how young I bloody am… we would see how your youthful body could keep up with mine. _He thought while trying desperately not to think about stripping the clothes from her finely shaped body.

"The only thing pushing me into dementia is being subjected to conversations with idiot Gryffindors." He muttered.

"Perhaps you would be better not to initiate them then. My, my, we really are being silly today, aren't we?" Her patronising tone was slowly making the fantasy of him stripping her naked and taking her on the dais right then more and more likely and right there in front of the entire student body and faculty.

Severus grabbed her by the wrist, softly but firm enough to make a point, and yanked her closer to him, so his mouth was just millimetres from the skin of her ear, "Do not call me silly, little girl. Remember who it is you are dealing with…"

He stopped and breathed for a swift second and felt his heart rate quicken as her scent enveloped over him; enticing him, teasing him, taunting him, drawing him closer to her milky, soft skin. He had to stop his hand from cupping her face as she turned around to face him, their noses a hairs-width apart. He stifled a groan of both pleasure and pain as she roughly grabbed him between the legs with her free hand, "Remember who _you_ are dealing with Severus. I have not been a little girl for a long, long time. Do not presume that you know anything about me. Good day to you." With one last, and perhaps lingering, squeeze, she stood up with grace and a small smile and began walking down the Great Hall towards the large, heavy doors at the entrance.

Hermione smirked_. My Gods he felt so good, so big… he actually felt semi-erect…nah, sure I imagined it. At least I got the better of him. What an exit!_

_Oh no you bloody don't, Granger! _His head growled, trying to ignore the slight hardening of his length after her abusing. He swiftly flicked his wand in her direction under the table and mumbled a spell with a smirk.

Hermione wondered why there was a wave of laughter as she walked down the hall towards the doors. It was only when she felt a slight breeze sweep past the backs of her shapely thighs, that she realised something was wrong.

* * *

With a look of sheer horror on her face she looked down behind her, only to see the back of her robes bunched up into a ball at the base of her back, her plump, lace clad arse on full display to the entire school. With a shocked squeak she corrected her robes and turned around with a look of sheer rage on her face, looking for the guilty party. She saw no culprit as her eyes scanned the room like a hawk. As her eyes scanned the room, she saw some jealous looks for the female students and looks of approval from the male ones.

It was only when her eye glinted towards the staff table that she knew she had found her man.

Sitting with the most infuriating but rather sexy smirk on his face, was none other than Severus Snape. As she walked back towards him, his smirk only grew. He was the smuggest bastard she had ever met and she found that part of him particularly arousing.

Hermione had long since come to accept her feelings towards Severus Snape. She knew she was highly attracted to him in both a physical and intellectual sense and that particular fact bugged the crap out of her. She hated that she could not cap her feelings for the man; she should dislike him, despise him… hate him even. Ever since she was eleven years old, the man had set out to berate and belittle her intelligence and existence. He was the one and only teacher she could never impress, yet he was the only teacher whose praise she craved. Even now that she was a professor herself, he set out to make her feel inferior and his behaviour towards her seemed to only strengthen her feelings towards him.

She had a small inclination that perhaps Severus enjoyed this strange dance between them as much as she did so she felt more encouraged to retaliate to his 'abuse'. It was her way of flirting with him, she supposed. There was nothing better than feeling that she had gotten the best of the surly potions master and this occasion would be no different.

_Although, I think he went a bit too bloody far this time. Oh, I'll need to think of something pretty wild to wipe that smirk of his face_. She thought with a small smirk.

She stopped her confident stride directly in front of her arch enemy with her chin tilted high.

"If it's a war you want, Severus Snape…a war you shall have." She whispered in her most menacing voice.

Severus gave her a small smile, "I look forward to it, Professor Granger. Nice arse by the way…"

As her mouth gaped open in shock at his comment, he swiftly stood and left the Great Hall while trying to ignore the fast beating of his heart and the slight erection he was sprouting at the memory of her plump, creamy buttocks swaying as she walked down the hall.

_This is going to be an amazing school term; I can just feel it in my bones_. He thought in silent glee.

* * *

Hermione walked back to her quarters in a slight haze, Severus Snape said she had a nice arse. She bit her lip and suppressed a delicious shudder as she thought back to the way his eyes raked over her body before he left the Great Hall.

_Who knew? Severus is a red blooded male after all._

"But how to get him back for that prank… hmmm…" She said aloud, tapping her chin with her slim, manicured finger.

A wicked grin came across her face as an idea struck. "Oh yes Severus… you _will_ feel my revenge…and it is going to be positively delicious!"

* * *

_A/N: ooooh, what will Hermione do to poor, sexy Severus? Lol_

_I will warn you lovelies that I am going to be away the next week or so… I get married on Friday and I am jetting off to Catalonia on Sunday for 7 days BUT I may just write some delicious chapters while I am off – I will update as soon as I am back providing I receive some more lovely reviews from you fine, supportive people lol Love, Jenni xx_


	3. Retaliation

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual and powerful equal.

I will warn you that this story, like all my others will be of an adult nature. There will scenes of an erotic nature later on in this story so go no further if you are offended by fics with sexual references.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

Ps – With the recent crack down on EROTICA on fan fiction, I will be uploading my stories on Ashwinder to be safe. My pen name is Professor Chrystal.

* * *

Severus could not believe his own audacity and cheek with the prank he had pulled with Hermione in the Great Hall. He didn't know what had possessed him to do such a thing although the view of her lovely, curvy backside had been both a bonus and a hindrance. The thought of her hips swaying from left to right as she walked from the hall was tantalising to him. It made him extremely aroused, which was fine… when he didn't have a class of sixth year Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff students staring up at him expectantly.

"Quiet down the lot of you! Yes, that includes you Gissing! Shut it! Now, this lovely afternoon will be filled with star light, ponies and buttercups!" He said sarcastically. "Wiggenweld potion will be your assignment today. Details are on the board. Get to it. The first student to finish the potion successfully will receive 10 points for their house."

His annoyance increased as the class did not move a muscle, still looking up at him in silence.

"Move!" He barked, causing several of the class to jump in fright and snap into action.

_Fucking idiot children!_ He thought rolling his eyes. He was counting the minutes until the end of the class so he could take care of his physical impediment and give the memory of Hermione's lovely and plump arse the attention it deserved. He was not forgetting the glint in her eye when she said she would get him back for the prank he pulled. Severus could not help but feel both excited and nervous at the prospect of her retaliation.

"Hmm… let the games begin indeed." He muttered to himself.

The woman was simply delightful in every sense of the word. She was his equal in every aspect and it seemed to him that the more they argued, the stronger his feelings for her became. He knew on his part it was due to his frustration from not being able to have her for his own – like a child acting out in class in order to secure the full attention of the teacher. It was pathetic, some may think, but it helped him cope with his hopeless feelings somewhat. At least then when they argued she was wasting her precious time and energy on _him_. Severus snorted inwardly at how pathetic he truly was in this situation; the wizarding world's bravest man who faced the most evil being in history and survived to tell the tale, is too afraid to tell the brilliant young witch, who he is falling deeply in love with, that he has feelings for her that lay far beyond the contempt he showed her publicly. The poor girl would never know the depths of his admiration and Severus was convinced that it would be better for her if things stayed as they were between them. He desperately tried to ignore the pang he felt in his chest when he thought about how it would be to kiss her beautiful, plump lips, to have the opportunity to tell her how much she meant to him every day or to wake up next to her each morning, burying his nose into her fragrant hair as she slept.

_No, she will be much happier in life if she does not know. As much as it hurts me… it is the least I can do for the woman I love. No woman would want to have my affections forced on her. I refuse to do it to someone as wonderful as her_. He thought fighting back his tears as he turned his attention back to the class working in front of him.

* * *

"How to pull a prank on the most Slytherin wizard since Salazar himself… hmm?" Hermione sat pondering in the staff room with a cup of tea. She was still at a loss as to how to get revenge but she knew that after what he did to her, retaliation was definitely required.

She had thought of a good idea earlier but she later dismissed it, as it proved to be a little harsh by her standards. After all, she did not want to hurt Severus, despite how much he had embarrassed her. The heart wants what the heart wants, as they say, and she did not want to lose him or his delightful, yet at times frustrating company.

"You know you will be classed as a modern day cannibal if you bite your lip any harder, Miss Granger." A stunningly familiar voice drawled from beside her. If Hermione had been shocked by his sudden appearance, she did not show it.

_Keep it cool, Granger_. She coached herself.

_Good girl, seem indifferent to my presence, we will make a Slytherin of you yet._ He thought with proud approval.

"Good evening Severus." She said in a sickly sweet voice, a new plan beginning to form in her head as she spoke. Her sweet smile and tone was not lost on Severus. He began to feel a little bit nervous; his beautiful Gryffindor was up to something it seemed.

"Good evening, Granger. I trust you have not had any more incidents of indecent exposure today." He smirked. Hermione smiled again, not fazed by his taunting.

"Not at all, Snape. Although today was interesting… I don't think the male students have quite liked me as much as they do now. I feel ever so popular. It seems I have you to thank for that."

The sneer on his face was instant and Hermione felt herself begin to hope that he was perhaps becoming a bit jealous.

"Yes, well some of us are valued for our intellect and others for their…attributes. Unfortunately for some of us in academia simply having breasts or being the best friend of Harry Potter cannot help us get up the career ladder." He spat at her before downing his cup of tea he had just made in one loud gulp before he stood and strode out of the room in a temper.

"Oh no you bloody don't you bastard!" She shrieked, her voice stopping him in the hallway. She came out the room stomping and stood almost nose to nose with him.

"What the fuck did I ever do to you, Snape? How dare you insinuate what you did back there! How dare you belittle my intelligence like that! You've gone too far Snape! Too far!" She clapped her hands together, closed her eyes and mumbled something under her breath.

As she opened her eyes, she smirked widely.

"Let us see how your students respect you intellect now, you bastard." Severus watched her lovely figure turn from him and stomp away and around the corner.

That was intense… I really riled her this time. I wonder what she meant by her parting shot? I feel ok and don't feel like she hexed me. Silly, beautiful girl.

He shrugged his shoulders and headed back to his quarters not noticing the house ghosts currently ending themselves laughing at his now red and gold hair colour.

* * *

To say he was furious would be a grave understatement. The little chit had turned his bloody hair red and gold… bloody Gryffindor colours! He could not, as much as he had tried, get his hair back to its original colouring. He had tried an array of potions and even invested in a few foolish wand waving charms but to no avail. He grudgingly acknowledged how brilliant her retaliation was and knew that he would need to ask her for assistance to rid of his awfully coloured hair do. He studied his reflection in the mirror before heading off to Hermione's quarters.

"I suppose I deserved this one, did I not? I did not think she had such a devious side to her. Oh yes, Hermione Granger we shall make an honorary Slytherin of you yet." He grimaced at his hair one last time and rolled his eyes before leaving in the direction of his love's rooms.

"Bloody woman will be the death of me." He muttered.

* * *

_a/n: hi all, I am back! Wedding and honeymoon went swimmingly. We arrived back from Catalonia yesterday and I had written this chapter as I sat at the poolside (I am committed lol) so please review and a new chapter shall be added soon. Many thanks, Jenni x_


	4. Things come to a head

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual and powerful equal.

I will warn you that this story, like all my others will be of an adult nature. There will scenes of an erotic nature later on in this story so go no further if you are offended by fics with sexual references.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review and it's only fair since I have spent many hours writing up these stories for your hungry appetites lol.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

**Ps – With the recent crack down on EROTICA on fan fiction, I will be uploading my stories on my own webpage to be safe. You can PM me and I will give you the website address.**

* * *

Hermione lay lazily on her sofa in her silk teddy, smirking as she thought over the events of the past few days. She would have loved to be a fly on the wall when Severus discovered his hair colour alteration.

_Snape one, Granger one… I wonder who will be the winner at the end of the match. _She thought while idly twirling a curl around her finger as she thought of the handsome Potions Master.

A knock at the door quickly snapped her out of her musings.

"Um, one second!" She called out as she rose from the sofa, sorting her house coat over her silk gown so she looked like a respectable professor rather than a wanton minx.

She swung the door open with a smile but that soon faded into a nervous grimace as she spotted the dour looking man of her thoughts standing in her doorway.

"Good evening, Granger." He growled.

She ignored the moistening in between her legs and tilted her chin up in confidence, "Good evening, Snape. To what do I owe this visit?"

He rolled his eyes and walked passed her, into the room where he sat himself down in a rather comfortable looking wing- backed chair.

"Please… do come in and take a seat." She added sarcastically.

"Sarcasm does not suit you. Now, I want this abomination gone." His face was expressionless though his eyes twinkled slightly as he looked at her.

_That man could be such a heartbreaker if he would only show some emotion in his face._ She thought, resisting the urge to straddle him to see if his face would change.

"And what abomination would you be speaking about, Severus?" She asked as she sat on the sofa next to his chair, fighting a smirk.

"You bloody well know which abomination. Now fix this!" He hissed. Hermione suddenly felt slightly nervous. An angry Snape was not a nice thing to be subjected to.

"Um, well… I can't." She squeaked, closing her eyes so she would not see him explode in anger. After a few seconds she peaked at him through one eye reluctantly. Severus was looking at her face intensely. He did not look angry nor did he look like he was going to hex her to death.

His voice was very calm when he finally spoke, "What do you mean when you say you cannot fix my hair colour back to its normal condition?"

She laughed nervously, "It lasts 48 hours. I cannot be reversed before then."

Hermione saw Severus breathe in through his nose slowly, an attempt to calm himself down she thought.

"So I am to teach classes like this tomorrow?"

"Unless Albus can offer an alternative or you could pull a sickie?" She suggested weakly.

He ran his hands up and down his face in exasperation and looked at her with an open expression, "Why are we constantly doing this to each other, Hermione?"

The use of her given name knocked her for six; he had never called her Hermione in all the years she had known him. He looked as though he had dropped his steal exterior and was speaking to her as one adult to another.

"Well, you BLOODY started it…" She began, immediately kicking herself mentally as she saw Severus stiffen and his emotional walls slammed back into place. He stood abruptly and walked towards the door, Hermione felt her stomach drop.

"Forgive me for thinking you could have an adult conversation, _Miss Granger_." He spat out her title at her and saw her visibly recoil.

"Severus, please I…" she stammered.

"No, I do not want to hear your damned excuses. I will see the Headmaster concerning this. Good evening Professor."

The echo of her door slamming shut as he left seemed to ripple through her in a most horrid way. She felt physically sick. He had looked so vulnerable and finally showed her a glimpse into his more human side and what did she do? She bloody pointed the finger of accusation at him like a petulant child. Although their little 'competitions' had begun with his actions, she had never put a stop to them either. She was just as much to blame as he ever was and if she was honest with herself, she bloody loved the relationship they had when they wound one another up.

"Idiot girl!" She felt her eyes well up, still staring at the door where her he had left.

Sleep did not come easily for her that night, she was too upset. Had she perhaps lost him already? Had she completely buggered any chance she may have as his friend or more?

"Oh Severus, I am so, so sorry. After years of wanting an opportunity to just speak to you as an adult, I bloody fuck things up!" She wept into her pillow until sleep finally consumed her.

* * *

Albus covertly watched his two youngest staff members at the breakfast table the next morning, the animosity and the sexual frustration between the two of them was beginning to come to a head.

When he saw Hermione ask Severus to pass the salt and heard the potions professor telling her to 'kindly go and fuck herself', he knew it was time to intervene.

"Severus, Hermione, my office in fifteen minutes if you please." Albus looked at the two of them with sparkling eyes. This look was not lost on the pair who both looked down at their plates like school children being chided by their Headmaster. In fact, the whole situation wasn't a kick in the arse off exactly that.

* * *

_**Present Day…**_

"Good morning, Severus." Hermione gave him a small smile as she sat down next to him at the breakfast table. He could see she was trying her best to be polite as the Headmaster had requested of them the day before.

"Good morning… Hermione." He grumbled in reply, not looking up from his plate with great determination. Hermione felt a tad bit miffed that he would not even make eye contact with her.

"I had thought that all was well between us after our talk with Albus yesterday." She said sweetly through gritted teeth while loading her plate with bacon and sausage.

Severus kept his eyes to the plate in front of him, excitement growing in his belly as he listened to the forced politeness in Hermione's voice.

_The little chit's sunny resolve is cracking already_. He thought in evil glee.

"You thought wrong then, Granger. I have no inclination to be your… _friend._" He spat angrily.

And that is when it happened.

Hermione Granger stood and grabbed Severus Snape roughly by the chin making him look up at her. The entire Great Hall stopped in silence as though frozen in time. No one ever touched the Potions Master… well, no one touched him and lived to tell the tale anyway.

"You are a nasty piece of work, Snape." She growled, fighting back tears.

"And you are a annoying little cow, Granger. Does it not exhaust you being so meddlesome? I just want to eat my breakfast in peace without being conversed with, stared at or having someone try to become my friend. We are not friends, Miss Granger and we never will be. Now release me witch, or I will make you." His voice was hard but his eyes still held a softness as they looked upon her. Hermione, however, did not see this. She shocked herself, the entire school and most of all, Severus when she swung her hand back behind her and slapped her dark companion square on the jaw.

"Oh Severus, I… I'm so sor…" She started, both her hands grasped above her heart.

"You slapped me! You little chit!" He shouted back interrupting her apology, holding his jaw.

There was a stunned silence all around as they watched the scene in front of them. Albus quickly called an 'Expelliarmus' towards the Potions Master, stopping the Slytherin from blasting his attacker with a nasty hex.

"Professors Snape and Granger, my office NOW!" He roared. Both looked at each other with hateful glares as they made their way down the hall behind the Headmaster.

"What are you all bloody staring at! Get on with your meals!" Severus barked at the awestruck students around him. He ignored the whispers from them as they walked out the hall.

_"Professor Granger is my bloody hero… that was bloody brilliant!"_

_"How dare that cow lay her hand on Professor Snape… he's dreamy."_

_"She can slap me anytime!"_

_"Those two totally need to fuck and get it out of their system. Sexual tension in the workplace is never a good thing."_

This last statement shocked Hermione the most. She was shocked that it was in part true but more so because she was certain that it came from Minerva.

She looked onto the two men striding in front of her with murderous looks on their faces.

_Oh dear, it seems the shit has finally hit the fan._ She thought with a grimace. She wasn't sure what Albus was going to do with them but she had a feeling that whatever it was, it was going to be life altering.

If only she knew how right she would be.

* * *

_a/n: thank you all for the lovely wishes you send for my wedding that has just passed. Married life is very strange and the return to work has shaved some of my free time but rest assured, I will not neglect my story and should have at least one update per week. I have been receiving a large amount of alert and fave story adds lately but very little reviews. PLEASE review, it only takes a minute! Press that button and let me know what you think._


	5. Albus Takes Control

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual and powerful equal.

I will warn you that this story, like all my others will be of an adult nature. There will scenes of an erotic nature later on in this story so go no further if you are offended by fics with sexual references.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review and it's only fair since I have spent many hours writing up these stories.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support. I apologise for taking a few weeks to update – life has been hectic, family illnesses and lots of horrible things like that but rest assured,** I am back** and will be updating weekly as I have done in the past. I hope you all forgive my lack of attendance lately. I love you all, really.

**Ps – With the recent crack down on EROTICA on fan fiction, I will be uploading my stories on my own forum to be safe. Other authors, HP fan fiction and others can post their stories there and share their favourites too. We're just starting out so need as much support as possible. You can PM me and I will give you the website address.**

* * *

Dumbledore look sternly over his two youngest professors as he stroked his beard in deep thought. The heated and angry looks on Severus and Hermione's faces were almost comical but he steeled himself to take this seriously and try to drive the message home to both of them that their rivalry had gone far too far.

"This competitive streak, hatred, dislike, animosity ...whatever you two would wish to call it... has gone too far. I had hoped that you would act like adults and continue on in a fashion befitting professors at this institution but alas, my hopes were much too high. I am exhausted by both of you and your 'little shows' and quite frankly I feel that action must be taken. Due to this, you have both forced my hand to intervene."

Hermione held her breath in dread, waiting to be struck off and kicked out of the school while

Severus sat stock still, his whole body tense and his jaw clenched tight in anticipation.

"I believe the best course of action is to send you both on vacation. You are obviously very stressed and tense at this moment in time and I feel that a break is exactly what you both need."

He smiled, eyes twinkling like crystals.

Hermione and Severus visibly relaxed, a smirk appearing on the Potion Master's face.

"To be honest Albus, I think that is a stellar idea. I believe I could do with a week or two in peace and quiet. It would give me time to work on some of research, read a book...get away from _certain_ company."

His sneer was clearly directed at Hermione.

Hermione tutted and rolled her eyes, "Yes Headmaster, I quite agree with Professor Snape... it will be good to get some space between us. It'll give me some time to relax and reflect away from any _negative figures_."

She smiled sweetly at Severus and turned her eyes back to her boss.

Dumbledore looked thoroughly amused as he looked at the pair.

"Oh my, I believe you have both quite misunderstood me..." He started, noticing how Severus's body language had yet again turned defensive as he held his body stiff as a rod.

He slowly took a sip of his tea from his China cup for added effect, "You see, I am sending you both away for a few weeks vacation but you will not be alone... not entirely."

Hermione swallowed with a sense of horror pouring over her body, "Who else is going to be there then, Albus? Are you insisting we take a friend, or our familiars?"

She knew the answer, she mused later, but in her heart of hearts she hoped that Albus would not punish her to such an extent.

"Why, you will be going together, of course!" Albus chuckled.

"Not a fucking chance!" Snape growled, "I will not be made to endure her bloody company any more than what I already do! This is preposterous!"

"You cannot be serious, Albus. We'll kill each other! I'll... I'll kill myself!" Hermione whined.

"Melodramatic Gryffindors..." Severus mumbled.

"You can just shut your big, fat fuc..."

"Enough!" Dumbledore yelled, his cheery countenance long gone.

"Can you not see why I must push you two together? You constantly bicker, argue, sneer at one another and there is absolutely no reason for it. Out of all the staff in this castle you are the two most alike... this should, if anything, make you both agreeable to one another instead of the two of you grinding together like a mortar and pestle. It stops now."

"And where, oh Mighty One, have you decided you are sending us on vacation?" Snape spat, his mind reeling at this new development.

"I am sending you to my little, quiet and beautiful cottage."

"Is it the one in Tarragona or the one in Caithness?" He already really knew the answer but like Hermione, had hoped that Albus had given them the lighter end of the deal.

"It is Caithness, my boy! You have not been to that one yet Severus but I must admit it is beautifully situated. Just off the cliffs at the Whaligoe Steps on the outskirts of Wick. Truly pleasant place to be...you will be away for three weeks, or sooner should I be convinced that you are both making an effort to improve your relationship - both professional and personal. I will check in once a week to make sure that you have not killed one another yet. I had considered the cottage in Tarragona but the weather is frightfully hot this time of year and I did not think it would bode well with your pale complexion, Severus."

Severus ran his hands down his face in exasperation, "Thank you for being so bloody thoughtful, Headmaster! I am sure my complexion will thank you when it is thoroughly weather-beaten in the highland winds and rain." He had hoped for Tarragona; he had spent a few months there while he recovered from Nagini's bite. The cottage was quiet, peaceful and surrounded by breathtaking views. _Oh well, dreichScottish Highlands it is!_

Albus chuckled and popped yet another lemon drop into his mouth, his eyes closing in appreciation at the taste.

Hermione had been rather quiet since the Headmaster revealed where he was sending them and she had to admit, the place Albus described sounded idyllic even when faced with the sourly Potions Master as a companion.

_Although, I do think I am secretly pleased that I get to be with him for three whole weeks...perhaps I'll get under his skin in a positive sense for a change?_ She thought with a small smile.

Severus's thought went along similar lines as Hermione's, although he was angry at Albus for meddling in his affairs.

_Perhaps the three weeks with her won't be too bad. Hmm... three weeks away with a beautiful young woman doesn't sound half bad, actually…even if she does hate me. I may need to turn on the Snape charm_. He snorted inwardly.

"So... when are you despatching us on this torture?" Hermione hissed, keeping up the pretence.

Albus chuckled, "You will both leave on Friday after dinner by portkey. Come to my office at 6pm sharp...no need for clothes or toiletries...the cottage is very intelligent, much like this castle and will provide all that you need. Now, off with both of you and enjoy the remaining classes you have before your break."

"Oh I will enjoy it; no doubt teaching those little shits will be a walk in the park compared to three weeks with the kraken from the sea…" Severus muttered as he left the room, sweeping past Hermione.

Her mouth gaped open in embarrassment and shock, that comment was decidedly below the belt in her opinion.

"You really expect this plan will work?" She asked the Headmaster incredulously.

"I do not expect it… I know it will work. Trust me, Hermione. I have your best interests at heart here, I swear. Severus needs a true friend and I believe you are the best candidate for the job. Minerva and I can only do so much. We are more like parents to him than friends, I think. I also believe that you, Hermione, need a friend on hand. Mr Weasley has not spoken to you much since your break up those few years ago and Mr Potter, well Harry is rather busy being a father of four at such a young age. I think you need each other, perhaps even want one another in your lives and I want you both to be happy. You were both served a hardship during the war and part of that was down to me and my war effort. I owe you both this chance at happiness… you owe it to yourselves to at least try."

Albus looked at her with watery eyes and a sombre expression. Suddenly Hermione was not sceptical any more, she believed Albus was trying to help them and she knew that in her heart she truly desired Severus Snape. The likelihood that he would ever want her for more than just a friend was slim but she could survive being his confidant; at least she would be in his life that way.

"Ok, Albus… I will give it a bash. I only hope Severus will be as willing." She left the Headmaster's office with a small smile, her stomach fluttering in excitement and anticipation at the adventure ahead of her.

* * *

_a/n: I really will be back to normal and posting regularly as before but as I said, life has been pretty horrid but we're all better now and tis on the mend. Please review! x_


	6. Try a little help from my friends

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual and powerful equal.

I will warn you that this story, like all my others will be of an adult nature. There will scenes of an erotic nature later on in this story so go no further if you are offended by fics with sexual references.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review and it's only fair since I have spent many hours writing up these stories.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

**Ps – With the recent crack down on EROTICA on fan fiction, I will be uploading my stories on my own forum to be safe. Other authors, HP fan fiction and others can post their stories there and share their favourites too. We're just starting out so need as much support as possible. You can PM me and I will give you the website address.**

* * *

It was late before Hermione got to sit down and put her feet up that night; the children had been particularly rambunctious that afternoon and extra study sessions with a few of her struggling student had occupied most of her day. Taking a sip of her tea, she mused over the whole 'cottage vacation' scenario. She still couldn't quite believe that Albus was forcing them into this and she wasn't quite sure whether she was angry about it or secretly pleased. To be quite honest, the way she felt about Severus confused her at the best of times; she knew she was attracted to him, physically and mentally but at the same time she enjoyed getting one over on him and arguing with him until her throat was raw.

"There's only one person who could possibly offer me any advice on stubborn men... I think it's time I had a girlie lunch with Tonks and Ginny. Get some ideas on how to tackle the World's Most Difficult Man." She smiled softly at her familiar who was snoozing at her feet.

"If only men were as easily pleased as you, Crooks. Love me, feed me and never leave me. Simple. Ah, the feline philosophy to life!"

As thought sensing his mistress was speaking to him, his eyes opened lazily and he looked at her steadily for a second or two before closing again into a peaceful sleep, the slow action reminding her slightly of a certain Potion Master. "See? Simple." She chuckled.

Thursday afternoon was an absolute God send to Hermione; she had no classes and was due to meet up with Ginny and Tonks for a bit of feminine advice. She plonked herself down in the small booth at the Three Broomsticks and waited for her friends to arrive while nursing a steaming cup of hot chocolate.

"All alone, Granger?" She heard a familiar voice drawl over her.

"Just waiting for my friends, Severus. What are you doing here? I thought you had classes on a Thursday?" She tried to ignore the rapid beating of her heart at the sight of him and plastered a look of utter distaste on her face as she looked onto him.

"I usually do but Albus gave me the afternoon off to enjoy some male company." He nodded his head over to another booth where a very haughty looking Lucius Malfoy sat, ferociously rubbing at the eating utensils with his handkerchief, disgust evident on his features.

"Male company eh? I never thought of you as a 'friend of Dorothy' but that explains a lot, actually. You always seem like you've got something stuck up your arse, now I know it's probably likely you do." She smirked seeing the anger appear on his face.

"I am not gay, Granger and you fine well bloody know it. Merlin knows I need a bit of decent male conversation once in a while!"

"Oh yes, decent male _conversation_. Riiiiiiiight, I got ya! Your secrets safe with me." She winked at him and grinned as he stormed off to sit with his friend.

She was joined, to her great relief, at the table by Ginny and Tonks a few minutes later.

"Hey Missy! How are you!?" Ginny gushed, taking Hermione into a firm embrace.

"Hi Ginny love. Alright, Tonks?" Hermione squeeked as her other friend squeezed her in a hug.

"Wotcher, Mione!"

The three women sat down in the booth and were half way into their starters when they approached the subject that were all there to discuss.

"So you and Snapey balls huh?" Ginny blurted, almost causing Hermione to choke on her club sandwich.

"Keep your bloomin' voice down, he's sitting just over there you know." She nodded her head faintly in the direction of Snape. Had she been looking his way, she would have saw the Potions Master observing her with avid interest.

She took a deep breath and began telling her friends all about her confused feelings for Severus Snape.

"Severus, you're staring at her again." Lucius chuckled as he took a small sip of his Fire Whisky.

Severus had the decency to blush and look back at his friend, "I was not staring at her."

Lucius raised an eye brow and smirked, "You weren't this soppy over Lily Evans, you know. I think Miss Granger may be the one, your soul mate. Why don't you go for it Russ? You deserve some happiness in your life and you're not an unattractive man; you're intelligent, rich, charismatic, and humorous in a dry way… a good match for the young Gryffindor Princess overall, I must say. You could cut the sexual tension between the two of you with a knife." He chuckled softly, punching Severus in the arm in jest.

"Do not mock me Lucius. I know fine well that she would never look twice at me. It is obvious she dislikes me with a passion and would not piss on me if I was on fire. In fact, she has set fire to me on more than one occasion during our history. It's no use, my friend, it is a lost cause. Once again I have developed a fancy for a woman that I shall never have for my own. I am cursed to walk this earth alone until my carcass is worm food and then I shall, no doubt, walk the fields of Hell alone while I atone for my sins. Depressing, I grant you but there it is." He shrugged.

Lucius leant closer towards his friend and lay a comforting hand on his shoulder, "The young lady likes you, and she has barely taken her eyes off you these past few minutes that you haven't been staring at her. I know fire and passion when I see it and her eyes flare whenever you are in her sights. She doesn't hate you nor do you hate her… you both mistake passion for hatred and dislike as many a stupider person has in the past. Unbridled passion, Severus, is what you feel for each other and I promise you that one day you will both snap and succumb to your desires and that could be disastrous. If you feel more for her than mere sexual attraction, you would be best to approach her sooner rather than later and at least give her an inclination that you like her because diving into the deep end and starting off on sheer passion never usually ends well. You need to woo her…get to know her…show her the _real_ Severus Snape first before you lay with each other. I guarantee you she will desire and respect you so much more if you approach this that way. Trust me, old friend, I _know_ these things."

Severus sighed deeply, knowing his companion was right, "Alright, I will…try. I cannot help the fact that she makes my bloody blood boil and winds me up something rotten. But I will try and be nice to her and make an effort to get to know her while I show her a more realistic side to me, okay? Three weeks with the woman of my dreams… utter fucking disaster."

Lucius gave a hearty laugh as he stood from the table, "If she is not yours by the end of the three week, I will bartend in here for a whole weekend. Care to accept my wager?"

"Of course I do. I can't miss the opportunity to see you be a waiter. Deal." Severus chuckled as he followed his friend out of the bar. His eyes found Hermione's as he left and he gave a swift nod of the head to her before he made his exit. Her reaction was a small, shocked smile in return. He ignored the fluttering in his chest as he said goodbye to his friend and began to back down the road to Hogwarts.

_Well, it's not much but at least I said bye. I could have ignored her completely._ He thought with a sigh.

* * *

Severus took note of how his body reacted to Hermione smiling at him later that night as he sat in front of his roaring fireplace. It puzzled him to say the least how such a little facial expression could cause his usually frozen heart to thaw, much like his conflicting emotions concerning Hermione in general. It was like a sheet of magic spreading over his entire body, throbbing particularly hard in his stomach and heart area, and all just because of a small smile. He smiled slightly himself at the thought of her beautiful face beaming up at him; he wouldn't mind having that occurrence happen more often.

He snorted loudly, "Ha, if only. I reckon the only reason she smiled at me at all was that she was so shocked that I acknowledged her before I left the pub that she had to react in some way...caught between having her head explode or a small smile... I would have chosen the smile too. As if she would ever be interested in me! Lucius is a fool for thinking she would look at me twice in that respect and I am an even bigger fool for actually considering his opinion. These next three weeks are going to be awful, just awful."

Little did Severus know that the next few weeks would be a rollercoaster of emotions for both him and Hermione… but that didn't necessarily mean it wouldn't be an enjoyable ride.

* * *

_a/n: please review!_


	7. New arrivals in Ulbster

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual and powerful equal.

I will warn you that this story, like all my others will be of an adult nature. There will scenes of an erotic nature later on in this story so go no further if you are offended by fics with sexual references.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review and it's only fair since I have spent many hours writing up these stories.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

**Ps – With the recent crack down on EROTICA on fan fiction, I will be uploading my stories on my own forum to be safe. Other authors, HP fan fiction and others can post their stories there and share their favourites too. We're just starting out so need as much support as possible. You can PM me and I will give you the website address.**

* * *

The day of reckoning had finally arrived and both Severus and Hermione had thought over the advice their friends had given them previously; Lucius had basically said to get to know the witch better, work the charm and woo her before eventually telling her he was in love with her.

Ginny and Tonks had said to get to know him better until she felt comfortable enough to tell him that she loved him.

Hermione felt that her friends were basically nuts. She could never see herself being comfortable enough with him to admit her feelings.

Severus thought Lucius was high. He was pretty certain he had no charm whatsoever thus making him unable to ever woo Hermione successfully.

Their friends didn't really understand the situation they were in and they were pretty certain that their relationship, both career and social wise, would never be as clean cut as that for either of them. The next three weeks were going to be interesting and they were both in a world of trouble, that much was certain.

* * *

Hermione arrived to the Headmaster's office just behind Severus. She resisted the urge to smack him on the back of the head when he rushed into the room in front of her and did not hold open the door for her, although had she not caught hold of the door when she did, there was no doubt in her mind that she would have been nursing a very bloody and broken nose.

_Those doors are bloody heavy and there was no way that he didn't see me walking towards the office too. Bastard… fucking sexy bastard… but a bastard all the same!_ She thought as she entered the office.

"Ah, Hermione! Our little departure group is now complete and ready to rumble!" Albus beamed as he beckoned her further into the large room.

"Good evening, Albus. So when are we leaving?" She tried her best to keep her voice light and her eyes trained on her boss, avoiding Severus but as he traitorous eyes slipped to the dark haired wizard, she felt her heart skip a beat when she saw that his eyes were glued on her chest. Granted the top she wore was much lower cut than she would ever normally wear in the school but she was officially on holiday, she had a good size chest on her that she felt she had a right to flaunt and of course, she wanted a certain older gentleman to notice her as a woman as they endeavoured on this adventure together. It seemed her little plan had worked somewhat as Severus was almost salivating as he ogled her bountiful boobies.

Albus looked between his two professors with a wicked gleam in his eyes as he followed the direction Severus's eye.

_Young scamp!_ He thought with an inward chuckle.

"Now, you'll be leaving in a few minutes but first, would you both please take a seat and we will go over a few ground rules."

The pair sat down rather awkwardly; Hermione because she was nervous since she was finally aware that Severus was looking at her sexually and Severus because he had been caught.

_Well I am only human. She does have a cracking pair of tits… I wonder if I will ever get to motorboat those beasts_. Severus shook his head to get rid of the though, storing it away for later, and turned his attention from Hermione's breasts to Dumbledore.

"You are both adults, please remember this fact when you are away. Please also remember that you represent this school and its reputation. This vacation is an attempt for you both to get to know one another better, to try and understand each other more and most importantly, get the both of you treating the other with civility. You both know my thoughts on how I think you would be well suited as friends and I hope against hope that I am right and you will come to this conclusion also."

Severus snorted loudly, crossing his arms and threw Albus a look of defiance. Hermione's eyes shifted to her left where Severus was seated, mentally called him a 'fuck nugget' and slowly looked back at the Headmaster with a look that clearly said, "Not bloody likely!"

Albus saw the reaction from the two of them and decided that scare-tactics may be needed since they were both so stubborn.

"I do not want to find that nothing has been achieved during this… attempt. I am serious here professors. I do not want to have to let one or both of you go but I cannot let things here carry on as they have been. It is not good for the example you set the children, it creates a negative atmosphere in general and to be quite honest, I am too old for putting up with such childish behaviour. Neither of you are students anymore but you would be hard-pressed to see any adult behaviour from the two of you this past while. It must stop or I am afraid, one or both of you will be asked to leave this institution. Believe me when I say that I do not want this to happen but… it will if improvements are not seen to be made. Am I understood?"

Both professors looked truthfully shocked at the ultimatum their boss had given them. Granted they were aware that Albus was unhappy with them since his idea about the vacation but they had not thought that he was quite so serious about them getting on. Not to the point where he was threatening to sack them for their behaviour should it not improve, that was for sure!

"Yes, understood." Hermione almost whispered.

"Yes, I suppose." Severus drawled, his eyes showing his fear for a split second before falling back into indifference.

Albus smiled widely and stood from his desk. He went over to his small library and pulled down a large, red leather tome. "Now this will act as your portkey. Take care of it and I will check in on you in a day or two. Enjoy the cottage, be nice to the very few neighbours you have and most importantly…get along with each other. Now… off with you!" He chuckled, laying the book in front of them both.

Hermione blushed when she read the book's title, _Karma Sutra – the ultimate Wizards Guide_. Severus merely smirked as he read the title and took hold of Hermione's small hand in his.

"See you soon then, Albus." Hermione said with a small smile while her eyes took in the sight of their joined hands. Her small, feminine hands cupped against his large, manly fingers. The man positively screamed masculinity and Hermione could not help but acknowledge the pulse in between her legs as she thought of those strong hands touching her naked body. She was knocked out of that particularly delightful fantasy as Severus gripped her hand tighter.

"Goodbye, old man. No doubt you will find us share stories of our past loves and braiding each other's hair by next Sunday!" He sneered before laying his other hand on the portkey.

Albus watched as the pair disappeared in the whirlwind, his eyes twinkling like the Aurora Borealis.

"Good luck and goodbye. Merlin only knows what the next few weeks has in store for you! Now I must go and update Minnie. She will be so excited to hear of my little plan in action!"

He left the room with a spring in his step as he sucked on a lemon drop. He was certain this plan was going to work; he knew love when he saw it and he could see they were both smitten with each other and he believe that they would see this too if they could get past the fake hostility and malice first. He believed that they could be truly happy together.

* * *

The both landed with a thump in the middle of a grassy moorland, the north sea could be heard quite clearly in the distance. Looking around them from their seated position they could see the lights of a small cottage firing away in next field. It was beginning to get dark and the drizzle of rain combined with the highland gales seemed to snap them out of the shock of their surroundings. The location was beautiful; it was agriculture at its best. It was wild but it was breathtakingly beautiful.

_Mmm beautiful indeed, much like my lovely companion_. Severus thought as he looked on Hermione.

She was sitting cross legged now, those delicious breasts were bunched together tight against her crossed arms, her cheeks and lips were a ruddy red colour, her expressive eyes darting around the views around her as her hair blew about in the highland winds. Most would probably think she looked dishevelled but to him she looked positively wanton.

_I could fuck her here, right here in the middle of this field. I could just bury my face in that gorgeous chest of hers and lick her little body until it was raw_. He thought with a smirk before he rose from the ground.

Severus stood with a loud sigh as he stretched and cracked his back, the heavy tome still in his hand "I suppose we better head to the cottage lest we get eaten by a wild fox after nightfall."

He smirked at her as she gave a small, nervous giggle.

_Wild foxes eating us indeed! This place is absolutely gorgeous… I think this may not be as terrible as I had feared. _Hermione thought as she looked up at her handsome and surly companion.

He extended an elegant, long fingered hand towards Hermione and purposefully ignored the skip in his heart beat when she gave him a small appreciative smile and put her hand in his.

"Thank you, Severus. Let's get inside and then we can talk. It's bloody freezing and I think we are both in need of a cup of tea. Sound good?" She looked up at him expectantly, hoping that they could talk things over like adults. She noticed that he was absentmindedly stroking the back of her hand with his thumb as he looked down at her with soft eyes.

"Tea sounds a treat… then perhaps we can begin to sort out some things?" The uncertainty in his voice made her heart swell.

_Perhaps there is hope for us yet_? She thought with hope in her heart.

She smiled at him again, giving his hand a squeeze "Perfect. Shall we head?"

Severus nodded before he reluctantly let go of her hand. The pair began to trudge their way to the cosy looking cottage ahead, missing the interested eyes of two of their neighbours.

* * *

"That's the arrivals then?" asked the shorter of the two.

"Looks like it David, looks like it. We'll need to keep a close eye on those two I think."

"Oh I will, don't you worry about that."

The two figures looked at each other with wicked smiles. The two new arrivals would prove to be their entertainment.

_Hmm, entertainment indeed._

* * *

_a/n: Oh noes... could this mean trouble for our two favourites? Who are the two mysterious figures...are they friends or foes? Will Hermione and Severus begin to get on? What obsticles will they be met with? Oooh, ahhh, getting a bit hotter now! Review...and you will find out what happens in the next chapter soooooooon!_


	8. The Cottage

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual and powerful equal.

I will warn you that this story, like all my others will be of an adult nature. There will scenes of an erotic nature later on in this story so go no further if you are offended by fics with sexual references.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review and it's only fair since I have spent many hours writing up these stories.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

**Ps – With the recent crack down on EROTICA on fan fiction, I will be uploading my stories on my own forum to be safe. Other authors, HP fan fiction and others can post their stories there and share their favourites too. We're just starting out so need as much support as possible. You can PM me and I will give you the website address.**

* * *

The hike up to the old cottage, aptly called 'The Haven', was much more physically straining than either of them had expected, the rain making their fatigue doubly worse. Severus felt his rather calm and pleasant mind set turn sour as they both entered the freezing cold house.

"A log fire? How fucking fantastic." He muttered under his breath as Hermione pushed passed him. She was absolutely soaked through and Severus was trying his utmost to not stare at her the mounds on her chest covered with droplets of rain.

"You are a wizard, are you not?" She cast a warming charm over them both and left the small foyer to look around the place.

Severus muttered a small and appreciative 'thank you' as she walked past, mentally berating himself for being so stupid.

_Oh I forgot I'm a wizard. How big a fucking idiot does she think I am now? _

He mentally chided himself for his stupidity and went to go find Hermione, taking in the cottage's strange décor as he did.

The cottage was small but comfortably so, it held a sense of childish excitement; so many different artefacts lined the walls and shelves, not one piece of furniture matched the other and the entire place just gave off a wholesome, simplistic aura. Severus marvelled in shock as he opened the first door he came to and found one of the largest libraries he had ever seen. He guessed the room had an extension charm on it to harvest so many books, the cottage was far too small to have a room of such a size naturally.

_Hermione is going to go tits when she sees this_. He thought with a fond smile.

"Severus what are yo…" Hermione entered the room with her mouth wide open in shock. Severus quickly put the image of himself shocking his cock in that delicious mouth straight away and began to look at the collection of books on show.

"Do try not to orgasm over these books, some look to be very old." He sneered half heartedly.

Hermione rolled her eyes, "I thought we were supposed to be getting on? We may as well at least be civil to one another. Holy cricket, he has a first edition of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice! Do you know how much a book like this is worth?" She was practically beaming with excitement and Severus found himself struggling to keep up his dour demeanour when she was in a mood like this.

"Shall we have this discussion then?" She asked, motioning to the chair next to her as she sat down, book in lap.

"I dare say now is as good a time as any."

"Ok may I start?"

"By all means do."

"Alright… I suppose there is not going to be an easy version of this conversation so we may as well have at it. I want us to be friends, Severus… I really do but any time I have ever tried to get close to you or even start up a conversation with you, you just snap or sneer at me. I admit I do enjoy our arguments somewhat, having someone of similar intelligence certainly makes them more interesting…" Severus snorted at this but let her continue, "…but it's getting tiresome now. I want to know why you have never liked me or even tried to like me. I want to know why you hate me so much."

Her last statement caught him off guard somewhat. He knew that she probably thought he disliked her but hate? He could never hate her, oh how he wanted to tell her how he really felt about her and knock any negative thoughts from her head.

_Not yet Severus, friends first remember_!

"Firstly, I have never hated you Hermione. I resented you for a while, I found you extremely annoying as a student but I never hated you." He said softly.

"Why were you always so horrid then? Especially to me…"

"You were the only student I had hopes for. The first truly magnificent brain I had encountered in all the years I taught and you risked your life time after time on that bloody meddlesome duo, Potter and Weasley. It infuriated me that you would risk such a mind, that you protected them and stuck by them through thick and thin. I suppose a part of me was jealous because I had always wanted a friend like that…I never really had a friend after Lily and now that I no longer look at the world through rose tinted spectacles…she was never really my friend anyway. You reminded me of her in some ways; you're clever, although much more than she was, you were one of Minerva's favourites, you hung around with a Potter and you hated me with a passion. So many reasons to why I treated you like I did Hermione and I am ashamed of my behaviour for the most part of it. It annoyed me that you were a Gryffindor and you must remember, I was a Death Eater during your school days. I could hardly be seen treating you with manners and praise, as much as I truly wanted to. And as for how I treated you after the war… I cannot quite explain it. You seem to wind me up like no other and as you said, intellectually we are equal so it makes arguments much more entertaining. If it is any conciliation I will try and get to know you better on this vacation but do not expect me to be pleasant all the time. I am not a nice man in general, Hermione. I am grumpy and set in my ways, I can lash out and belittle without a seconds consideration for the other person's feelings as you know but… I will try. It would be nice to have someone on my side for once…"

Hermione leant forward and boldly set her hand on top of his, she ignored the way his body stiffened at her touch, "There's plenty people on your side Severus and I have always been on it, no matter what you think. I promise you that."

Severus could not take his eyes from their connected hands, she was sitting so close to him that he could smell her gorgeous scent. Rice milk and jasmine…bliss. Reality seemed to take hold of him as he realised that Hermione was looking at him somewhat expectantly as he had not spoken in over a minute.

"Um… I… let's just see how we get on over the next few weeks, shall we?" He said with difficulty, clearing his throat in an attempt to cover his nervousness and snap himself out of the temptation of grabbing her and kissing the living daylights out of her

"Sounds like a plan. It's far too late to talk about things in any more detail so I propose we have some tea and a little light reading before bedtime. What say you, Severus?" She smiled at him gently and sat back in her chair, pulling her hand away from his.

Both parties noticed the coldness they felt when their hands separated and the unresolved tension in the air. However they both felt marginally better that they had reached an impasse of sorts; he now knew she wanted to be his friend and she now knew that he had never hated her and was, at least willing to try and work things out between them.

Hermione sent Severus a wicked smile as she opened the book, "I wonder if I can read this entire novel before bed… if only I had some sort of liquid beverage to accompany such a book…"

Her mischievous brown eyes found his as she grinned even wider at him, seeing the humour in his eyes.

Severus took the hint, snorted and rolled his eyes, "Shall I go make some tea for the Gryffindor Princess while she peruses the literature?"

Hermione smiled at him widely, "Yes, please noble Slytherin. Although you may need to drag me away from here should you wish to get a decent conversation out of me."

He felt his heart skip a beat as she blushed prettily, "I will endeavour to get your attention, even if it means lifting you Tarzan style out of here and into the living room." He nodded and quickly left the room.

"I'd let you lift me Tarzan style any day, you gorgeous specimen of wizard." She muttered to herself.

Severus's head popped back around the door, "What was that?"

His sudden appearance gave her quite a fright and she almost dropped the valuable book on the floor," Oh! Um…nothing… I said I hope I can get out into the gardens and collect some specimens…for my experiments, you see."

He raised a doubtful eyebrow and left the room again, missing Hermione's shoulders fall as she slumped in relief.

_Woah, that was close_. She smiled and began reading, hearing Severus clattering about in the kitchen next door_. _

_How nice would it be if this was our house and Severus, my husband was making me tea after a hard day at work? Petty fantasies, for sure but this may be the closest I will ever get to having him all to myself… I have to make a go of this, I want him for my own… and I always get what I want._

* * *

Severus managed to find some tea bags and a couple of mismatching cups in the small and cramped kitchen. Looking around the room he found that he rather liked this little cottage; nothing seemed to belong together but the house seemed to suit its differing objects and decors. It was quaint, comfortable and full of adventure.

As the kettle boiled the muggle way, Severus took a moment to admire the view from the kitchen window. There was only a small distance from the cottage down to the famous Whaligoe Steps and on the other side of the cottage there was a sheer drop into the North Sea, no fences or barriers needed up here. The Whaligoe Steps were a man-made stairway with 365 steps that descend to what was once a landing place for fishing boats. The steps dated way back to the 19th century and were once used by fisherwomen to haul up the creels of herring landed at the harbour beneath.

_Simple people with a simple way of life_. Yes, he was going to enjoy it here up here.

His eyes were drawn to a small cottage in the distance, its light burning away against the black of night, the only other sign of human life for miles. Perhaps he would go for a walk tomorrow and introduce himself?

_Suppose we had better be friendly to the neighbour lest we experience the wrath of Dumbledore again._ He snorted to himself.

As he let the tea bag diffuse in the hot water, he had a small smile to himself as he imagined that he was making tea for his beautiful wife as she read in their extensive library. He was really going to give this 'being friends' thing a go with Hermione despite his earlier objections and if he was honest with himself, he really only pretended to be put out at the thought of being stuck in a cottage with her for three weeks. Secretly, he was over the moon.

"Hermione?" He called into the other room.

"Yes, Severus?" She replied, he could tell just from the tone of her voice that she was blushing. She never had quite gotten used to him using her given name.

"What do you take in your tea?"

"Just milk please, I'm..."

"...sweet enough, yes I know." He answered back. When he heard her softly giggle in the other room, he smiled. Yes, he just had to make a go of this.

* * *

_a/n: so one of my lovely readers (can't remember your name sorry) asked me where I got the idea to set this story in Caithness. Truth is, The Cottage is inspired by my great aunts cottage that is situated in Ulbster, Caithness...just above the Whaligoe Steps (which my Grand father helped restore back to good condition int he mid 80s - if you ever visit his signature ' ' is scribed into the 50th step... My great Polish uncle who lives there with my aunt is a carpenter by trade and makes all their furniture, all mismatching and unique. Their house has amazed and excited me over the years - it's just so wonderful and peaceful. Hopefully I am conveying how magical that cottage was to me as a child and still is to me, even as an adult. Please review!_


	9. Manipulative Boss

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual and powerful equal.

I will warn you that this story, like all my others will be of an adult nature. There will scenes of an erotic nature later on in this story so go no further if you are offended by fics with sexual references.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review and it's only fair since I have spent many hours writing up these stories.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

**Ps – With the recent crack down on EROTICA on fan fiction, I will be uploading my stories on my own forum to be safe. Other authors, HP fan fiction and others can post their stories there and share their favourites too. We're just starting out so need as much support as possible. You can PM me and I will give you the website address.**

* * *

They sat quietly sipping their cups of tea, a book in each of their laps. Severus had chosen to read a book about eccentric potion experiments while Hermione had decided to stick with classic literature and was a quarter of the way through Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice already. She had to admit though, that was not quite concentrating on the words of the book as much as she would usually. In fact she was much more interested in covertly watching the dark sorcerer sitting over from her looking more relaxed than she had ever seen him. He sat with his legs crossed, book poised lazily in one hand while the other traced his bottom lip with its fingertips, seemingly deep in thought. She also noticed that he had a small crease in his brow as his dark, expressive eyes studied each word on the page. He really was an enigma, but an attractive enigma at that.

Hermione marvelled at how he could look so graceful just sitting on a shabby old chair with a cuppa and a book in his hand, he looked so homely in this setting but he had a glint in his eye that still made him look decidedly dangerous. He was all male and overall, a very yummy package.

Noticing the time and noticing that she had been unashamedly staring, she decided to call it a night and head to bed. She hadn't seen much of the cottage earlier with the library catching her attention so seeing what the bedroom looked like excited her slightly.

"I'm absolutely shattered, Severus. I think I will go and have a look for my room; I'll let you know where yours is once I'm settled. Sleep well." She smiled at him softly as she left the room, not waiting for a reply.

Severus's shoulders slumped in relief once she had left. He had been trying his damndest not to stare at her while she read for the past hour. He'd managed to steal a few glances at her but he was aware that she was studying him as she read quite intently.

_Perhaps she was musing about how roguishly handsome I am_. His mind joked.

"Not fucking likely..." he muttered as he ran a shaky hand through his dark hair.

He remembered how she looked as she sipped away at her tea, oblivious to his staring. She really was beautiful and he found himself marvelling at how she looked now in comparison to how she looked in her school days. Not that she was an ugly teenager; she was pretty-ish but very bookish. It was amazing how she had developed into such a beauty in such a short space of time. He thought her stunning, riveting... just absolutely perfect. He was an old fool who once again let his heart rule over his head.

_Oh well better to have loved in secret than to have lost in reality..._

* * *

Hermione loved this cottage. The entire feel of the place seemed to create peace within her and the fact that Severus was being civil, even friendly to her, made her heart leap and her smile brighten.

She felt like a big idiot, she was smiling like a Cheshire cat as she came to the room at the end of the hallway.

There was an envelope on the door addressed to 'Severus and Hermione'.

Taking it from the door with a crease in her brow, she set back off in the direction of the library. It would be rude to read it alone since it was addressed to the both of them. When she got there she was pleased to see that Severus had not moved from his chair. He looked at her with an inquisitive raised eyebrow as she sat down in the chair she had sat in earlier.

"I found this on the back of the door at the end of the hallway. It is addressed to both of us. Shall we hear what it has to say? No doubt it will be some words of wisdom from our esteemed boss."

Severus snorted at her sarcasm but nodded his approval. Hermione broke the wax seal on the back. Much like a howler, it floated in front of them, a small mouth appearing in the creases of the paper. Both wizard and witch looked at each other warily as the envelope began to talk in Dumbledore's voice.

"Good evening to the both of you. Welcome to The Haven, my home away from home. I want to go over a few ground rules before we continue on any further. Now, firstly my neighbours are called David and Daniel. They are both squibs who are cousins of Minerva. I have asked them to keep an eye on the both of you and assist you if you need it. Please be nice to them, Severus. They are good men and extremely handsome so you better make sure that young Hermione does not run off with one of them!" He chuckled. Severus kept his face neutral at what Albus had said and had Hermione not been busy blushing, she would have seen Severus digging his nails into the palms of his hands in an attempt to fight off the jealous feelings he had at the thought of any other man stealing Hermione's affections.

"There is not much in the way of entertainment around these parts, hence my extensive library to which you are both very welcome to use at your leisure. There is a barn dance the last Friday of every month here where the entire village and the surrounding towns come together to have a good time. Since it is nice to be hospitable and sociable, my friends who run the dance are hosting this month's celebration in your honour. I expect you both to attend _and_ to dance.

Feel free to change the living arrangements around to suit you and please do try to get along. Oh and another little thing… there is only one bedroom so you will both be sharing a bed. I feel this will allow you both to bond better and not be so…standoffish with one another. This development cannot be changed, you will not be able to fall asleep in another room in the house for more than five minutes without a forfeit being performed, and the only place you can sleep is in the bed. By touching the portkey to arrive here, you have both been placed under the Loki charm –similar to the charm used in Wizarding Truth or Dare – you _will_ perform your forfeit no matter what if you break this house rule. Sleep tight and enjoy! I shall see you both in a few days!"

The letter chuckled again and then disintegrated into ash. Severus and Hermione sat in stunned silence. At least five minutes had went by before Severus spoke, his voice laced with anger and shock.

"That old meddling bastard never fucking ceases to amaze me." He ran an exasperated hand through his long, black hair with a sigh.

Hermione slowly met his eyes, "I know. I'm so sorry Severus. You've spent your whole life having someone control all that you do. He has no right to do this to you…to force this friendship onto you. We can go home, tonight if you wish. I'll hand in my resignation and you can stay at Hogwarts. This…this isn't fair to you. I'll go and get ready to leave." She stood up slowly, tears in her eyes. She could not believe that Albus would set them both up like this. She was startled when Severus caught her wrist as she walked passed him.

"Hermione… I am not angry at you. I am angry _for_ you."

At her confused look he continued, "He is used to controlling me but he should not be trying out his manipulations on you. I believe that we are already making good progress to becoming… friends. Let's stay and see how things pan out. I do not want you to resign from Hogwarts, after all who would be there to argue with me?"

He smirked at her and stood from his chair, her wrist still in his hand, "You go and get ready for bed. I will follow in about fifteen minutes. We are sensible and intelligent adults, we will get through this. Albus Dumbledore be damned."

Hermione smiled widely at him, her heart light, "Thank you Severus. I promise I won't be long. We will show the old bastard, right?"

"Indeed we will." He chuckled, letting her wrist go. She further shocked him by grabbing his hand back and giving it a small squeeze. "I've got a feeling this may be the beginnings of a very beautiful partnership."

He watched her as she slipped out of the room with a strange smile on his face, "Beautiful, indeed."

* * *

_a/n: so what do you guys think thus far? I am overwhelmed at the amount of fave author and story alerts I've been receiving for this story but I would love to receive some more reviews - please let me know what you think! Thanks, Jenni._


	10. Naughty Boy!

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual and powerful equal.

I will warn you that this story, like all my others will be of an adult nature. There will scenes of an erotic nature later on in this story so go no further if you are offended by fics with sexual references.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review and it's only fair since I have spent many hours writing up these stories.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

**Ps – With the recent crack down on EROTICA on fan fiction, I will be uploading my stories on my own forum to be safe. Other authors, HP fan fiction and others can post their stories there and share their favourites too. We're just starting out so need as much support as possible. You can PM me and I will give you the website address.**

* * *

Hermione looked around the bedroom and took in the decor. The bedroom was quaint and as quirky as the rest of the house but this room in particular was especially cosy. A four-poster bed with a patchwork quilt and goose feather pillows lay in the centre of the room looking like the most comfortable bed she had ever seen. The fact that she was going to be sharing said bed with the man of her dreams made it all the more... _inviting_.

There was a pretty dressing table sat in front of the window that looked out into the farm down the road. She found a hair brush and various creams, lotions and potions set out in front of her as she sat down to brush the tugs out of her voluptuous curls. It was a good ten minutes later before she had all the tangles undone and she took a moment to think over events that had occurred so far that day as the brush glided through her hair uninterrupted.

She was still in utter disbelief at the cheek of Albus and his bedroom fiasco and she dreaded finding out what sort of nightwear had been provided for her. She held her breath as she opened the wardrobe door, expecting to see a silk, Slytherin green teddy or a black bustier with crotch less panties. To her relief though, she found a modest, knee high cotton nightie. It looked warm, comfy and conservative but still quite sexy; not unlike the nightdresses she wore at Hogwarts in her own quarters.

She smothered a giggle as she inspected the black silk PJ bottoms and black cotton top in the wardrobe.

_Looks like Severus will get to wear his beloved black in bed too. That arse of his will look fantastic in these…but I still can't believe he is going along with Albus's plan. The man really is an enigma. Any excuse to prove the old coot wrong!_

Closing the wardrobe, she walked towards the bed and sat down on it gently; it felt like she was sitting on a cloud. It was by far, the cosiest and fluffiest mattress she had ever sat on and she doubted that she would be in hurry to get out of a bed such as this in the morning. Then again, maybe that was part of Dumbledore's plan too?

"Wouldn't put it past the old sod..." She muttered before straightening up her appearance and going in search of Severus.

She smiled slightly as she felt the soft carpet caress the soles of her feet as she walked to the library where she had left Severus. Her features changed from happy to mushy as her eyes found Severus in the room; he was fast asleep in the chair. As she tip-toed towards him she felt her heartbeat quicken, she nervous at the thought of waking him up. After all, he was an ex-spy who would most likely react to her interrupting his sleep by sticking his wand in her neck with a curse on his lips as soon as his eyes opened. He looked so much younger when he slept, she noted. His facial expression was relaxed, his posture calm and he was snoring softly. Hermione could honestly say she had never seen such an adorable sight in her life.

It was only as she got closer to him that her brain finally began to work.

_He is sleeping... but I thought we couldn't sleep in the house without having to carry out a forfeit?...Oh no I need to wake him or he will go tits at having to carry out his forfeit…_

She was about to waken her companion up when a loud, ringing noise sounded around the house and another letter swept past her and hovered in front of Severus. Severus had a multitude of emotions cross his face at that exact moment; anger, shock, tiredness and, the one that shocked Hermione most of all, bashfulness at having fallen asleep.

As before, the envelope began to speak, "Oh Severus, how did I know you would be the first to break this rule? As I said before, you are required to carry out a forfeit. Your punishment for your disregard of my household rules is; you have to sleep without a shirt on. This is a relatively tame forfeit for now but believe me, the more you break this particular rule of mine, the more serious the forfeit will be. Good night, my boy. Sleep well, Professor Granger." The voice chuckled before the envelope disintegrated into ash. The silence that stretched in the room was almost deafening.

"I did try to wake you but I was too late."

"Think it would be funny to see me punished, Granger?" He sneered as he stood and swept past Hermione out of the room, banging the bedroom door shut loudly.

She felt her heart drop; they had been doing so well up until now and bloody Albus and his stupid manipulations had yet again caused them to be in a negative mood with each other. She was angry now too, but at Albus. If he had just left them to their own devices, they would probably have gotten on like a house on fire…but no. Albus was never happy until he had poked his nose in where it wasn't wanted and caused havoc wherever he went.

She sighed and shook her head, mentally steeling herself for the confrontation or non-acknowledgement she was sure to endure from Severus once she entered the bedroom.

_But on the plus side_… the voice in her head whispered …_you get to see him topless and we have always wanted to see the body beneath those famous robes._

* * *

Minerva looked over her tea cup with her sternest expression, "You are going to push them even further apart if you carry on interfering, Albus! You do this every time you get an idea into that head of yours. You are like a dog with a bloody bone, just let it go!"

The Headmaster merely chuckled and nibbled on a ginger biscuit, "My dear, you know how the both of them are. They are as stubborn as mules…as we both once were and we were both more than pleased to have the assistance of friends and their attempts to push us together. Their situation is not unlike our own was. I see no harm in giving them a little shove in the right direction."

Minerva shook her head slightly, "That may be true but Albus, but you know that we were not as damaged as they both are emotionally. The first war did not affect us as the second war has done to them. They are both more insecure and also less emotional human beings than either of us. Granted that may change if they do get involved with each other but I think that their situation requires a great deal more care than ours did. I mean, really the only problem we had was that you refused to acknowledge your feelings for me because I was your transfiguration apprentice. I am sure Severus feels a little bit of confusion due to the fact that Hermione was once his best student…plus he publicly disliked her during her school days, he has to feel a little bit of guilt because of his behaviour towards her. At least you tolerated me somewhat."

Albus chuckled again as he reminisced, "Indeed, I tolerated you but I _barely_ tolerated you. I struggled to keep my feelings at bay so the easiest way to deny them was to treat you with contempt. You were so sure of yourself…so brilliant and you knew just how to wind me up the wrong way. So many times you would stomp past me after an argument and I'd have to fight myself to stop grabbing you by the arm, dragging you back and kissing you with every ounce of love I had for you. You know how much I regret the years I wasted by not telling you. We could have been together much sooner had I just taken the chance to hope. It has been one of my biggest regrets and I do not want to see the same problem with Severus. He has so many regrets already… he deserves to be happy…he deserves to be with her."

"And she deserves to be with him too, I know this Albus." Minerva said quietly. She still couldn't believe that she was married to Albus, even though they had wed some 40 years ago. She knew where her husband was coming from and she too wanted Severus and Hermione to be happy together but he could be so manipulative sometimes that she was certain he had been sorted into the wrong house. _The Secret Slytherin, _as she used to call him in their youth. In the beginning her nickname for him pissed him off completely but it usually gave him an excuse to kiss her into submission for her cheek.

"I just wish you would have a little faith in the two of them, love. I would like to think that we would have found our way to each other without the help of our meddling friends…it would have taken a tad longer perhaps but…I think love would have found a way somehow. I think we need to take a step back and leave them for a few days to their own devices. From what you heard from the Super-Extendable Ears, they were getting along rather well, were they not?"

Albus stood and wrapped his arms around his wife, sighing deeply. "Yes I suppose they were beginning to treat each other with respect and it seemed that things were looking up. For you… I will back off but just because you asked and I do not want to upset the love of my life lest she turf my old arse out like she should have done years ago. So yes I will back off for you… a little bit. I know I interfere but it is only because I look on Severus the son we never had… I want him to be happy and Hermione is the one for him, just as you were for me." He kissed the tip of her nose and she snuggled her face into the crook of his neck, just as she had always done from the first day they admitted their feelings for one another. Even now, after all this time, Albus felt his heart swell every time she cuddled him like that.

"Thank you. I love you, Albus." Minerva whispered into his neck.

He smiled and squeezed her harder to him, "And I love you, my little Miss Minnie."

* * *

_a/n: awww Minnie and Albus! Old people need love too so I give them it! lol What do you guys think so far? You still like? Please review and let me know..._


	11. In bed with Severus and Hermione

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual and powerful equal.

I will warn you that this story, like all my others will be of an adult nature. There will scenes of an erotic nature later on in this story so go no further if you are offended by fics with sexual references.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review and it's only fair since I have spent many hours writing up these stories.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

**Ps – With the recent crack down on EROTICA on fan fiction, I will be uploading my stories on my own forum to be safe. Other authors, HP fan fiction and others can post their stories there and share their favourites too. We're just starting out so need as much support as possible. You can PM me and I will give you the website address.**

* * *

Hermione walked down the small corridor towards the bedroom, gingerly knocked and waited until she heard Severus grunt that she could come inside. The last thing she wanted was to just burst in on Severus while he was getting undressed. Well, she wouldn't mind if she did that but with Severus in the mood he was, she was pretty sure he would not look upon that occurrence with quite the same positive attitude.

When she entered the room, she saw that Severus had already climbed into the bed. Her breath caught as her eyes focused on him. He had the blanket pulled up to his waist, leaving his bare chest on show. She had never seen a man so attractive in her life. He was well toned, but not overly so. He had broad shoulders, a small patch of chest hair and a soft but firm tummy. He also had a pair of reading glasses perched on the tip of his nose while he read. He just oozed of sexual attraction and she found it hard to tear her eyes from his masculine form. Had she known that her old Potions professor was hiding such a gorgeous body under those billowing robes, she would have never been able to pay any academic attention in his class.

She padded softly along the length of the room to the other side of the bed without even looking him in the eye. She gave off an air of indifference but she knew that his black eyes followed her as she walked passed him. She slipped into the bed, grabbing her book and settled down to read, ignoring him completely.

Severus had calmed down somewhat since he shouted at her. He knew that she hadn't wanted to see him getting into trouble but he was embarrassed and his natural instinct was to lash out to cover this. Once he was in the room, he regretted how he had spoken to her, he knew that he was angry at himself but that it was all too easy to blame the nearest possible person to avert blaming himself. He was a complete idiot sometimes despite his intelligence. They were getting along so nicely before and he had shunted them back to how they used to be within a matter of seconds.

The pair sat in silence for the next ten minutes, reading their books. They were 'reading' although neither had turned a page or read a sentence. Both were unsure if they should try and sort things out, both were unsure of the other one's reaction.

Hermione clutching at her Gryffindor courage took a deep breath and finally broke the silence.

"You know my mother always says that you should never go to sleep on an argument. I think we should talk about what happened in the library, Severus."

Severus was relieved that she had spoken before him but inwardly winced at how afraid and unsure she sounded when she did, as though she expected him to roar at her, only admitting to himself than only five or six years ago, he used to do that to her quite frequently.

With a small sigh, he closed his book and set it down on the bedside table alongside his reading spectacles.

"As always, you are correct." He drawled, surprising Hermione slightly.

"Yes…well, um… I really did not set you up for a fall, Severus. I would never do that. Why would I do something so cruel and devious when we seemed to have come to an understanding with one another? I wasn't lying when I said I wanted to get to know you better… I really do want that, but the way you spoke to me in there was not warranted. I am not your student any longer, Severus… you'll do well to remember that."

"I apologise, Hermione. May we start over again?" He asked with both a nervous and unsure look in his eyes.

Hermione had thought about making him sweat for a while before she forgave him but remembering how unforgiving a friend he had had in Lily, she decided to give in and not torment the man any further.

"You are forgiven, Severus. I know you're trying to make the best of this and we have been getting along rather well so far and it's only the first day. Let's forget about this little mishap, read some more of our books and then get some shut eye?"

"Sounds like a plan." He gave her a small smile before turning back to his book, ignoring the warm, fuzzy feeling spreading from his gut to his heart.

* * *

The atmosphere that night proved to be much more comfortable with their little spat resolved. The both lay in the bed reading their books until Severus broke the silence.

"This is rather surreal, is it not?"

Hermione chuckled quietly, "What? Us sharing a bed together amongst our employer's meddling games?"

Severus scoffed at the sarcasm rolling off the Gryffindor's tongue as he closed his book.

"I meant us getting along with one another, actually. But then again, I suppose us sharing a bed together is rather, unexpected. I believe the pupils would die of shock if they could see us now."

"Well, surely you have heard the rumours about us?" Hermione enquired with a small smile, placing her book mark inside her tome before she closed it, turning her full attention to the dark wizard lying beside her.

Severus raised an eyebrow with a grin on his face. Hermione found it hard not to gasp at how sexy he looked when he did that.

"I have heard no rumours. But please, do elaborate..."

Hermione blushed slightly, "Well, they seem to think that we are secretly married."

As Severus's brow rose up into his hairline, she continued.

"They think that our caustic manner with each other is a front to cover some unbridled passion we have for one another. You've heard their little rhyme, haven't you?"

Severus smirked, "No, but do feel free to give me a rendition of your own." Hermione sighed and rolled her eyes, "You are a horrid man, Severus Snape. Ok, it goes: Roses are red, Snape wears black, he took Professor Granger into the sack, they kissed and fondled until they were spent, and bought a small house in the middle of Kent. Now they are married with a bun in the oven, Snape's not such a bastard now he's… gettin some lovin."

"What a bunch of regular little Wilfred Owens we have educated there... children are so thick. Amusing but thick... oh, bloody hell… _do_ stop blushing Granger. As pretty as it makes you look, you are not 14 years old anymore. There is no need to be embarrassed. We adults can talk about subjects that are… taboo." He chuckled.

Her face flushed even harder as she shifted in the bed uncomfortably, laying her book down on the bed beside her. Her eyes found his and she realised that he was not going to let her get out of this awkward conversation. The amused look on his face was enough to make her fume but since they had been getting on so well, she did not want to ruin the peaceful atmosphere by taking a tantrum. She decided to bite the bullet and simply tell him how she felt.

"You can't blame me; it's strange enough us managing to have a pleasant conversation without having a conversation about how the pupils think we are shacked up together."

Her face was bright red now and she felt extremely pleased that he said blushing made her pretty. It was a kind of back handed compliment, subtle but not flippant, much like the man who made the comment.

"You are a woman and I am a man, Hermione. We can talk about anything we please now and what is more natural for human beings than sex? We are no longer teacher and student; you do not need to shy away from speaking to me on things that are considered... risqué."

Hermione nodded, "I know this but it is going to take a little getting used to. I mean, less than twelve hours ago we were at each other's throats, calling each other all the names under the sun… and yet, here we are, in bed, talking about how the children think we are sexually involved with one another. Forgive me if I don't break out my diary and ask you to read aloud a chapter or two."

Severus grinned at her again, an action that still had Hermione in a tizzy, and took her small hand in his. "I enjoy our _banter_ in the school but I admit, I have never really had a true friend. You all know about Lily but she was never a _real_ friend. She was an entity that made me feel safe and secure and I clung to her when she was alive and to her memory once she was dead like some sort of obsessed, pathetic sop. I…would like if we could be friends… friends who can talk to one another… about anything."

Hermione squeezed his hand in hers, wishing so desperately that she could just pull him towards her and rest her lips on top of his. He looked so vulnerable at that moment and all she wanted to do was hold him and tell him that she would make everything ok and would make the rest of his life happy, or die trying. She knew she was nowhere near ready to make that sort of confession to him so she opted to kiss him on the cheek and pick her book up again.

"You _are_ my friend Severus, and I promise I will try my best to talk to you about anything and everything. It is just going to take a little getting used to, that is all." She smiled at him once again before opening her book and reading her text.

She did miss the look of absolute wonderment that Severus was giving her after she kissed him. It was such a simple and innocent action but it had caught him off guard. The kiss, although brief, was gentle and caring and Severus found it hard to keep his heart from skipping a beat as her plump, moist lips descended on his skin.

He inwardly snorted and forced his attention back to his book; he was as bad as a hormonal teenage boy.

It was another half an hour before Hermione yawned and turned to Severus, "I think it's time for sleep. Do you agree?"

Severus nodded his head and set his book on the table next to him before settling down fully under the duvet cover, "Good night Hermione."

"Sleep well, Severus. I'll see you in the morning." She snuggled down next to the Potions Master, revelling in the close vicinity of his body and taking comfort in the heat radiating from his lean form.

As the night passed, both slept in deep and undisturbed state; a sure sign that trust was not an issue between the usually untrusting pair, for when we sleep we are at our most vulnerable.

The couple would be glad of their night of full rest as next few days would prove to be particularly entertaining, stressful and surprising for them both.

* * *

_a/n: let me know what you think! **PLEASE REVIEW**_


	12. Admiring One's Bed Partner

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual and powerful equal.

I will warn you that this story, like all my others will be of an adult nature. There will scenes of an erotic nature later on in this story so go no further if you are offended by fics with sexual references.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review and it's only fair since I have spent many hours writing up these stories.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

**Ps – With the recent crack down on EROTICA on fan fiction, I will be uploading my stories on my own forum to be safe. Other authors, HP fan fiction and others can post their stories there and share their favourites too. We're just starting out so need as much support as possible. You can PM me and I will give you the website address.**

* * *

"So David, what have you witnessed so far?" A voice asked from the corner, taking a sip of tea.

"Absolutely nothing out of the ordinary, lovey. We watched from the window for a little while, just looked like they were talking to each other… nothing important. It seems that they are making a real effort to get on." David shrugged, stirring his tea.

"Good, very good, Albus will be pleased, I'm sure. Just keep an eye on them and try to get to know them both if you can. The two of them in the same room is bound to be entertaining for yourself and Daniel… that much I can guarantee. Where is that boy anyway? He went to get us a digestive biscuit over ten minutes ago, what is he doing?"

"Well, you see, he seems to have a bit of a crush on the Granger woman. He keeps sneaking up the field to catch glimpses of her through his binoculars. He says she is the prettiest girl he has ever seen." David chuckled, "It is a shame that he is far too shy to ever approach any woman, never mind a pretty one! It seems I am cursed with a life of looking after my brother… not that I am bitter, mind you."

"You are both handsome young men, who are still in their prime I might add, there is time for you to find the right girl and settle down."

" Well, you never know what the future holds I suppose."

David and his guest chuckled heartily before sipping away at their tea in comfortable silence before Daniel burst through the kitchen door looking ruddy cheeked and out of breath.

"He's got 'em sharing a bloody bed...and Snape...Snape has to go to sleep topless as ... forfeit for falling a... sleep." He sat down with a plonk, his chest wheezing painfully.

"For the love of Merlin boy, calm down and catch your breath! Now, tell us how you managed to find this information out."

"Daniel, if you were merely spying on the two of them from the farm gate, how on earth did you manage to hear what was going on? Getting too close to the cottage before we have even introduced ourselves would not look good for us at all as first impressions go." David asked with his eyebrow raised in question.

Daniel had the decency to look bashful, his red cheeks rowing even redder as his shoulders slumped.

"I sneaked up outside the library... they left the window open. You know how bored I get up here... it is a little bit of entertainment for me."

"So Albus has them sharing a bed?" The voice asked shaking it's head, "Meddling old coot."

The voice held both disappointment and admiration in the tone. "You boys keep an eye on them, make sure nothing untoward happens. I'll pop by in a week to see how they are progressing with each other as I will, no doubt, be left in the dark if I leave it up to the Headmaster to share details with me."

David and Daniel both stood from their chairs, giving a small kiss each to the woman in front of them. "Until next week."

Both brothers nodded a quiet good night to one another before heading off to their bedrooms for the night. The next few weeks were going to be unusually busy for them.

Their lives were normally consumed with mundane tasks. David was apt in potion making despite his squib status and his younger brother, Daniel was a dab hand at farming; both businesses earning them a pretty penny from the other inhabitants of the sleepy highland town. So to be charged with taking care of the two visitors was a form of entertainment to say the least. They very rarely had new comers in those parts, most of the families there had stretched back from generation to generation and it was a rarity to walk down the high street in the neighbouring town of Wick and not know every person you walked past.

Yes, it was certainly going to be anything but mundane with those two in town. David fell asleep thinking of how he could get Severus to look over a few potion ideas he had while Daniel dreamt of long and pretty curled hair along with a set of fine, hazelnut eyes.

* * *

Hermione almost bolted out of the bed she woke up in the next morning, disorientation clutching at her as soon as her eyelids looked around the strange room. It took her a moment or two to realise where she was and who the warm body was next to her in the bed. She was silently thankful that she did not wake up in a tangle of limbs with Severus. It would, of course, be terribly cliché, not to mention mortifying. Granted, she wanted to wake up in a bed snuggled next to him, but not quite this early in the game!

She took a moment during this quiet time to observe Severus sleeping. He was even more attractive as he slept, his features relaxed. He didn't look any younger but he looked so much less intimidating when his piercing eyes were hidden behind his heavy lids. His eyes were always a source of interest to Hermione because they were so expressive in comparison to the nearly always dour face they were situated on.

She remembered once seeing a flicker of regret in those dark eyes once when he saw how hurt she was after one of the comments he made to her back in her school days when he made the 'I see no difference' comment about her teeth when Malfoy cursed them to grow long and down past her chin. It took quite a while to shrug off the teasing "Beaver Features" jibes from the Slytherin students after that.

Her eyes slid down from his large eyelids and focused on his large nose. She felt a small jolt of pleasure in her nether region as her mind began to remind her what people said about men with large noses, but she quickly filed that thought away for a more quiet, private time that she could enjoy by herself once she got back to Hogwarts.

She unconsciously licked her lips as he looked at his thin but very kissable mouth. It was hard to believe that such a gorgeous looking mouth was the deliverer or so many harsh and cruel remarks. On the other hand and perhaps as equally as impressive was the utterly wonderful things, the insights and opinions that poured from those lips along with that truly seductive voice.

_Jings, don't even begin thinking about his voice or his bones may be jumped upon this morning_. She said to herself with an inward chuckle.

After casting the tempus charm, she saw that it was only 6am. With a stretch and a yawn she snuggled back down in the bed with a smile on her face, revelling in the heat from the beautiful man next to her, drowning in his scent. She fell asleep in no time at all, completely missing the pair of obsidian eyes who were now studying her features with avid interest.

* * *

_She is so beautiful, especially when she is sleeping; that small crinkle on her forehead is gone completely when she is not arguing academic points or her tiny brow is furrowed in concentration over the latest journal… I could stare at her all day, she is so perfect. My nerves never allow me to study her face like this too much… or I bloody blush when she catches me staring. My spy days are obviously long gone! Her skin is so fine and looks so soft to touch… I wish I could awaken her with small kisses peppered all over her lovely face. Perhaps one day… perhaps in the not so distant future this will be a sight I will be gifted with every morning until the day I die? I would die a happy man indeed. _

He snorted softly.

_Christ Severus, you are turning into a bloody sap. It really must be love._

He couldn't help the lopsided smile that graced his face as he thought about the goddess in front of him. He reckoned if he was lucky enough to secure her affections that, although he would be much more pleasant with her, he would still go out of his way to wind her up and get an argument out of her. She was always so passionate, so animated when she sparred with him. He thought her at her most beautiful when she was like that. He smiled again. At least if she was his, he could kiss her into submission or better yet, grovel and have the best make up sex Hogwarts had ever seen.

He was broken out of his thoughts as Hermione began to quietly stir and those amazingly bright eyes slowly opened and look straight back at him. They stared at each other for a few seconds before Hermione smiled at him softly, a smile which Severus was more than happy to return.

"Good morning, Severus."

"Morning, I take it you slept well Hermione?" He said stretching out the kinks in his back.

Hermione felt her mouth go dry as she looked over his impressive torso once again, "Um…yes, I slept quite well. I'm glad to see you're not a snorer."

He chuckled lightly as he sat up, "I am not a snorer, no. Unlike some I might mention."

Hermione's face began to flush instantly and Severus felt mildly guilty for teasing her. "I am kidding, Hermione."

"Oh, thank Merlin for that. I would have been mortified if I had kept you up with my snoring! Did you sleep alright?"

"Better than I have in years if I am honest…"

"Oh? And why is that?" She felt every hair on her body stand on end as her heart began to pound.

"Hermione, for being so intelligent sometimes you fail to see what is right in front of you. I think even a blind person could see how I…"

He stopped mid sentence as a knock sounded at the door. He quickly threw on a robe and left the room to answer it, giving Hermione an apologetic look as he exited.

Hermione almost growled in frustration, she was certain he was going to tell her something important there.

_Like his undying love for you? Dream on, Granger._

She rolled her eyes as she copied Severus's actions of throwing on a robe and going to see who was at the door. When she got there she saw Severus speaking to a tall, dark figure on the door step and she couldn't help the horrible feeling travelling down her spine as she surveyed Severus's body language. He was as stiff as a board, shoulders squared and sneer on his face.

"Severus, is everything ok?" She asked as she stood behind him, eying the man on the step warily.

"No, it is not. Get back inside Hermione."

She did as she was asked but could not ignore the sick feeling in the pit of her stomach. She only hoped Severus would be alright, no matter what the problem was.

* * *

_a/n: I am astounded by all the review and appreciate them very much! Thank you for all the support and I hope you will keep reviewing and reading!_


	13. An unexpected guest

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual and powerful equal.

I will warn you that this story, like all my others will be of an adult nature. There will scenes of an erotic nature later on in this story so go no further if you are offended by fics with sexual references.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review and it's only fair since I have spent many hours writing up these stories.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

**Ps – With the recent crack down on EROTICA on fan fiction, I will be uploading my stories on my own forum to be safe. Other authors, HP fan fiction and others can post their stories there and share their favourites too. We're just starting out so need as much support as possible. You can PM me and I will give you the website address.**

* * *

Albus sipped his cup of tea slowly under the scrutinising gaze of his wife, Minerva.

"You promised me you would butt out of their relationship Albus! Now I find out from my two cousins that you have forced them to sleep in the same room together! Not only that but if they so much as have a nap outside of that bedroom they have to pay a forfeit! Severus, I believe, had to sleep topless due to your little rule. Just what do you think you can achieve? This is a sure way to lose ourselves two of our best professors!"

Albus had the audacity to smirk at his wife and her anger. He knew that was not a particularly good idea in itself to laugh at Minerva when she was already annoyed but he just could not help himself. He always thought that she was at her most beautiful when she was angry and although his wife had aged as he had, she was still a hell cat when she was riled about something and getting her into that state was a source of pure joy and rather a turn on for the randy old wizard.

"Don't you _dare_ grin at me, you old coot. What happened to your promise to stay out of their affairs?"

Albus shrugged, still grinning "Having David and Daniel spy on me eh? I must say that is rather sneaky of you wife but I will say that particular part of my plan was already in play before I made my promise to you so by all accounts, it is not affected by the promise I made. I am sorry if I did not make that clear, love. But please, be assured that I will not stick my nose in any more… but the forfeit charm stays…and that is final Minerva."

"Don't you use that bloody teacher tone on me, Albus Dumbledore!"

Albus flashed her a coy smile, "You used to like it well enough before, in your younger, school girl days."

"Oh do be quiet, you bloody pervert."

Minerva stayed stony faced for only a few seconds before she broke into a small smile, reminiscing about her school girl days with Albus.

* * *

Hermione sat on the edge of the arm chair in the little living room, wringing her hands and biting her bottom lip in worry. It was the silence that unnerved her.

She knew from experience that Severus was not really a man to shout and that he was at his most dangerous when his voice was at his quietest, it seemed to help

his gorgeous voice spit even more venom than usual. She sat for around another three minutes before she decided she just had to check and see if Severus was ok but just as she stood to leave the room, the man himself entered looking none too pleased.

He sat in the chair opposite from her and picked up a book starting to read without a word uttered to her. Hermione felt her bloody begin to boil in annoyance, "So?"

Severus lazily turned a page, making sure to avoid eye contact with her, "_So_ what?"

"Stop acting the closed off dick, Severus. You obviously knew that man at the door and you obviously were not happy to see him on our doorstep. Now you either tell me who he was or I'll…"

"Or you'll _what_, Hermione?" He growled, he was never one to take kindly to ultimatums or threats.

Unaffected by his tone, Hermione stood with her chin held high, "Or I'll go, find and ask him who he is myself!" She marched from the room and headed for the front door only to be grabbed around the waist and frogmarched back to the bedroom where she was thrown on the bed.

Severus pinned her to the mattress, holding her hands above her head firmly enough to render her immobile, but gently enough as to make sure he did not hurt her. Hermione was panting heavily and trying her best to thrash around under the heavy body on top of her.

"Get off me, you bloody great bat!" She shrieked, "I will hex your bloody balls off you bastard, let me up!"

Severus bit back a chuckle as he looked down on the crazy but beautiful creature beneath him. She was so angry and so full of life, it made the air in his chest catch. Plus, he just loved to fuck around with her and rile her until she struggled to form coherent sentences.

"Calm down, Miss Granger." He said quietly, keeping his hold on her.

She thrashed around even more violently, "Miss? I am Miss Granger again? What the fuck!? I was _Professor_ Granger before… I was Hermione last night! What the fuck are you playing at? We just begin to get along and then some weird looking old man comes to our doorstep and you looked as though you just saw the second coming of the Dark Lord! Tell me who that was at the door! How can we be proper friends if you won't confide in me?"

"Do not speak of what you know nothing about!" He growled.

"Well bloody tell me! You're supposed to be my friend, Severus! Friends tell each other thing… personal and uncomfortable things! You are going to have to start trusting me!"

Here she stopped struggling against him completely and looked into his eyes. For a moment that felt like an eternity to them both they just looked into each other's eyes. Hermione's eyes pleaded with his.

_Please just trust me._

Severus closed his eyes and sighed in defeat, "I do trust you, Hermione. I apologise for my earlier behaviour but believe me when I say, my reaction was warranted. The man…or should I say, the creature who was at the door was…my estranged _father."_

Hermione could not contain her gasp, "But… I thought T-Tobias Snape was… _dead_."

Severus snorted and laughed bitterly, "If only. No, that was just a story my mother and I created to hide the shame of our family when he up and left us for a younger woman. I was eleven years old and just about to leave for Hogwarts. It was very hard for me to leave mother during that time… she was so alone. So we made up the story that he had passed away due to carbon monoxide poisoning one weekend while mother and I were off visiting her parents. It helped us heal, plus in those days a single mother was frowned upon. I did not know he was staying here. He says he tried to contact us on several occasions and wants to get to know his son. He has seemingly been keeping tabs on me my whole life through a certain Headmaster. A Headmaster I plan on having a few choice words with next time I see him. Anyway he lives in the farm on the other side of the moor… but it is of no importance to us. I asked him _politely _to stay away from me and you."

Hermione felt her heart break for Severus as she studied his emotionless face, "And you sent him packing?"

"I told him to fuck off before I Avada'd his worthless arse. I do not want to discuss this further Hermione, please. Avoid him should he try and approach you if I am not with you, nothing but pain and suffering comes to those in his company. I suppose that is where I inherited that particular talent from."

"You are one of the bravest, noble and fantastic men I have ever met Severus, you are nothing like your father, nothing at all. Thank you for telling me." Hermione tried her best to stop the tears from falling but failed. She felt so sad for the life Severus had been subjected to; couldn't the man just have a little luck and love for once?

Severus, upset at seeing Hermione cry, leant down and kissed the few stray tears that lay on her cheeks. "Do not cry for me_, Cardia-mou_. You know, just having you here makes my life that little bit more pleasant…as infuriating as you can be. So we will have none of this crying business, alright? It makes me feel weird and you look incredibly ugly when you cry." He kissed her forehead before slowly rising from her body and standing by the side of the bed.

She leant up on her elbows, letting out a half sob, half laugh and simply stared at her companion. She had an array of emotions streaming through her at that precise moment; sadness due to his story, excitement because he had kissed her face so gently, as if he adored her and she also felt love.

She watched him gracefully stride to the doorway, "Severus?"

"Yes Hermione?"

She bit her lip and wrung her hands, "What… what does… cardia-mou mean?"

He smirked at her in the most sexy and infuriating way, "You are a bright girl… look it up."

Hermione rolled her eyes before breaking into a massive grin, "Oh I will, Severus. I most certainly will. It's not like I am short on books here…"

Severus only hoped that she didn't find out what the term of affection too soon as it would completely give the game away. He had to get his wits about him before he was going to tackle that particular issue and he could still not believe that he had almost told her that morning how he felt about her. Perhaps his father's interruption was not all bad after all.

_Well, I suppose that is one thing I can be thankful for from that bastard._

He left Hermione to get dressed and decided to make breakfast, after all the day was young and they still had neighbours to introduce themselves to.

* * *

_a/n: thank you so much for all your fantastic reviews. Unfortunately, my schedule is a little hectic so I cannot reply to all of them - but I do try I promise. I really hope you are all still enjoying this story as I really love writing it. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE review and let me know what you think! Much love, Jenn x_


	14. Steamy Realisations

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual and powerful equal.

I will warn you that this story, like all my others will be of an adult nature. There will scenes of an erotic nature later on in this story so go no further if you are offended by fics with sexual references. Also, please do remember that this is FAN fiction – should I change the rules of the story such as using electricity in Hogwarts, it is because I am the author and can do stuff like that. You don't like it?...Please go and read the actual books because that is the only way you will find canon to Harry Potter.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review and it's only fair since I have spent many hours writing up these stories.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

**Ps – With the recent crack down on EROTICA on fan fiction, I will be uploading my stories on my own forum to be safe. Other authors, HP fan fiction and others can post their stories there and share their favourites too. We're just starting out so need as much support as possible. You can PM me and I will give you the website address.**

* * *

It took a good ten minutes for Hermione to compose herself after the incident with Severus that had just happened. It almost floored her how gentle, understanding and open he had been with her, not to mention the tender kisses he bestowed upon her teary face.

_Cardia Mou...cardia mou... it sounds Italian? Greek? Cardia sounds like Cardio, could it have something to do with his heart? Nah, don't be silly...he wouldn't call me something sweet like that. It probably means 'spoiled princess' or 'bane of my life'. I have a feeling the language section of the Headmaster's library will be explored this afternoon!_

As she walked through the cottage in the direction of the kitchen, she heard Severus humming a tune to himself; that alone in itself made her life feel totally surreal. He had a lovely singing voice and if she wasn't mistaken, he was humming the Mountains of Mourne.

He turned and gave her a slight smile as she entered the room and motioned to the small table in the corner as he busied himself making a pot of tea.

"I was thinking that perhaps before I begin my language translation quest in the library this morning, we could take a journey into the nearest village or something first? Um… where is the nearest village by the way?" Hermione asked, smiling gratefully at him as he set a large mug of tea and a plate of toast in front of her.

"There are a few neighbouring towns but they only have a shop or two in them at best. Wick, is the largest town near here, they have quite a few shops and a newly build supermarket so I suppose we could go and get some supplies for the week ahead. I also wanted to introduce myself to Minerva's cousins who live in the next field. I know they are spying on us." He drawled, sitting down in the chair next to her.

She almost choked on her tea, "Spying on us? How do you know?"

He smirked, sipping on his coffee, "Do try and swallow your tea, Granger… I can't have you choking to death. Not unless it's on something much more interesting than tea… something with a bit of girth, for example."

Hermione blushed furiously, not missing the double entendre Severus had just delivered and quickly changed the subject. She wasn't used to him flirting and to be honest, it had knocked her for six.

"Um, yes…well. How do you know Minnie's cousins have been spying on us?"

Severus busied himself with spreading his toast, hiding his own blush and silently screaming at himself.

_Where the fuck did that come from? Baby steps, Severus!_

"I am an ex spy, if you remember, Hermione. You do not, no; you_ cannot_ turn off those sorts of skills. The shorter one, Daniel I think it is? He was spying at the library window when we were conversing last night."

Hermione suddenly looked apprehensive, "Do you think there is a sinister reason behind their spying on us?"

Severus chuckled roughly before shaking his head in the negative. "No, I do not believe there is a sinister reason. I reckon the most likely scenario is that Minerva is unhappy at Albus meddling in our affairs and has asked her cousins to watch over us and report back. Then if she hears of something extreme, she can tear a strip off Albus and give him a right good telling off."

She chuckled into her tea and nodded in understanding.

"I feel rather sorry for Albus then in that case."

Severus grinned at her, "As do I. Nevertheless, I feel that I will have to politely ask them to kindly back off. I do not appreciate them listening in on our private conversations and should their interfering continue, I will hex the living daylights out of them both, whether they are Minerva's cousins or not. Now, would you care to use the shower first before we head out for the day?"

He watched as she stretched and rose from her chair, nodding her head as she walked from the room.

"Thank you. I promise I shall not be too long in getting myself looking presentable."

"You look presentable as you bloody are. I would ravish you as you look right now that is for sure." He muttered as he began to wash the dishes the muggle way, pointedly ignoring the budding erection currently sprouting in his trousers at the thought of Hermione being naked in the next room.

He adjusted his manhood roughly in an effort to rid himself of his hardened state, "Down boy."

* * *

As she worked the shampoo into her hair in a riotous lather, Hermione mused over the events of the past 20 hours they had spent here. She had already fought with Severus, made up with him so they were on rather friendly terms, fell into an argument with him again, made up, saw him topless, slept in the same bed as him, had a heart to heart with him concerning his father who emerged as it seemed out of nowhere, had a wrestling match on the bed with him, he had kissed her tears away and they then had a rather pleasant breakfast with one another.

_Life has definitely become surreal that much is certain. _

Her eyes closed and a small grin came upon her face as her memory returned to the sight of Severus topless. He was a fine figure of a man to say the least; so chiselled and strong, as a man should be.

Feeling decidedly naughty, Hermione took the opportunity of the locked door, the soap and the memory of Severus topless to allow herself a little bit of self…_indulgence_.

Her pink fleshy bottom lip was trapped between her white, pearl-like teeth as her hands slowly caressed her full breasts, tweaking her nipples gently before a delicate hand slipped down her soapy torso towards her heat. Her back arched against the ceramic tiles of the shower wall as she widened the stance of her legs, working her fingers frantically against her most private and sensitive area. She envisioned Severus looming over the top of her naked body, his smooth and firm chest rubbing against her breasts as his hard length pounded in and out of her. Her fingers worked against her swollen, pink nub in a frenzy as she imagined her name being whispered into her ear as he came inside her.

"Mmm…oh yes, Severus!" She moaned loudly as she came with a shudder, quickly holding her breath in horror as she realised that her outburst had been rather loud. Usually she would not have been so careless. She grimaced when she realised she had also forgotten to cast a silence charm on the bathroom. In her defence though, she never usually shared her living space with the object of her fantasies and was free to moan, grunt and sometimes scream profanities as she played with herself.

_Merlin's saggy balls, that was intense. _

She quickly finished washing herself and got out of the shower; hoping that Severus had not been within hearing distance when she brought herself to completion with his name on her lips.

* * *

Meanwhile Severus was standing outside the bathroom door as still as a statue. He was in deep shock and could hardly believe what he had heard as he made his way from the kitchen to the bedroom to fetch his reading glasses.

She was obviously masturbating in the shower whilst thinking about him! If he wasn't in suck a state of shock, he was sure that he would have cocked like a crow at that precise moment. He had a slight idea that Hermione found him attractive and the fact that they were both getting along rather well had instated a new found sense of positivity in him but now that he had heard her touching herself in the most intimate way while moaning _his_ name, made him feel absolutely giddy.

He felt slight panic as he heard the shower turn off as he had yet to move from his shocked statue. He was also sporting a rather impressive hard on so he knew he would have to snap out of his pleasant coma and bugger off out of Hermione's way before she opened the bathroom door. He knew she would be mortified if she knew that he had heard her so with all of his might he gained control of himself and quickly stalked off to the gardens to recuperate.

* * *

As he walked amongst the various vegetable patches and exotic plants down by the rear of the garden, he caught sight of Minerva's two relatives in the near distance. Taking advantage of his good mood, he decided to head down the field and introduce himself.

"Hello there!" He cried as he walked towards the taller of the two figures.

"Good morning Professor Snape. It's an honour to finally meet you."

"I take it Albus and Minerva have already filled you in on our situation." Severus smiled at the taller man slightly.

"Indeed they have. I am David, the elder of Minnie's cousins." He extended an elegant hand towards Severus which he graciously accepted.

"And what is your name, young man?" Severus enquired to the other man who was busying himself weeding one of his vegetable patches.

"Daniel, Professor Snape. I trust you find Ulbster to yours and your partner's liking?"

Severus nodded his head but quickly added, "Professor Granger is my colleague, not my partner."

"So she is single then?" Daniel's eyebrows were so high that they were almost into his hairline. Severus decided in that exact moment that he did not like this fellow one jot. He was not threatened by Daniel's looks but he was closer to Hermione's age and that was enough to put Severus on the defensive straight away. It simply would not do to have a young whippersnapper try and muscle in on the woman he wanted.

"She is not seeing anyone exclusively but I should warn you that there is a presence of a wizard there and they are slowly making progress into having a serious relationship. I hear her wizard has an angry temper and is insanely jealous. I would keep well shot if I were you." He tried in vain to keep the sneer from his face and felt his blood boil as Daniel did not look put off in the slightest. He simply shrugged and grinned, "So, she is single then. Obviously her wizard is a waste of space, otherwise he would have snapped her up in exclusivity. She is a real looker… I will have to nip up and introduce myself soon."

David watched the exchange between the two men in amusement and decided to quickly diffuse the situation by removing Daniel from Severus's presence.

"Come on now Dan, I am sure the Professor has much to do today, let's not inconvenience him any further today." He turned to Severus with a small smile, "It was lovely meeting you today, if you should need anything at all, please do not hesitate to call in on us at any time."

"Professor Granger is welcome to call in any time too." Daniel added cheekily, ignoring the glare from both Severus and David.

"Daniel…arse… move… now! Goodbye, Professor."

"Good morning."

Severus stood in the field for a few more moments watching the two brother's figures get smaller and smaller as the distance between them grew. He heard Hermione calling for him and turned to see her standing in the door way looking more beautiful than he had ever seen her.

She was wearing a short, white linen dress with yellow daisies embroidered around the waist, along with flat white sandals. Her hair was hanging loose around her shoulders and Severus could not help but think she looked like a woodland nymph.

"She sounded like a bloody nymph this morning anyway, dirty girl." He muttered under his breath as he walked towards the house. The smile she gave him as he reached the door, made his heart skip a beat.

"There you are! I was worried you had run off with some highland beauty, leaving me here to fend for myself." She giggled as he rolled his eyes.

"I believe there is only one beauty in these highlands… the dress is becoming on you by the way." And he said no more as he swept past her and disappeared into the toilet down the hall, leaving Hermione speechless on the doorstep behind him.

She smiled shyly to herself as she thought about his words and came to a happy conclusion.

_Severus Snape fancies me._

* * *

_A/N: please review and let me know what you think!_


	15. Day out in Wick

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual and powerful equal.

I will warn you that this story, like all my others will be of an adult nature. There will scenes of an erotic nature later on in this story so go no further if you are offended by fics with sexual references. Also, please do remember that this is FAN fiction – should I change the rules of the story such as using electricity in Hogwarts, it is because I am the author and can do stuff like that. You don't like it?...Please go and read the actual books because that is the only way you will find canon to Harry Potter.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review and it's only fair since I have spent many hours writing up these stories.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

**Ps – With the recent crack down on EROTICA on fan fiction, I will be uploading my stories on my own forum to be safe. Other authors, HP fan fiction and others can post their stories there and share their favourites too. We're just starting out so need as much support as possible. You can PM me and I will give you the website address.**

* * *

Severus quickly showered and got himself dressed, eager to return to the natural beauty who was waiting for him in the living room. His head was a wonderful array of chaos and calm as he went over the events of the morning so far. He was still slightly pissed off about his father's miraculous attempt to get back in touch with him but the whole shower incident with Hermione had rather taken the limelight in his thoughts. He was now certain that the young witch found him attractive, the only obstacle was either getting her to admit she had feelings for him or get himself sorted out and declare his undying love for Hermione.

He snorted as he looked in the mirror, shaving his chiselled jaw line. He was not a handsome man, interesting looking, perhaps but not handsome in the conventional sense.

Perhaps it was a more sensible idea to simply have Hermione admit her feelings to him first? Yes, that would be a much better and more reliable approach to their situation because he was simply too much of a chicken shit when it came to affairs of the heart.

He had only ever been in love once before and almost the whole of the wizarding world knew that tragic tale. Once the war was fought and won, he had time to truly sit down and just think about his whole 'obsession' with Lily Potter and the result he came to embarrassed him, to tell the truth.

He had chased the memory of a ghost for so many years and due to an inordinate amount of guilt, had signed himself up for a life where he risked his every existence every day in the hopes of redeeming himself in her memory.

He risked his life for the lost life of a woman, a woman who had not been his friend for years, a woman who broke his heart and shunned his friendship because he said something horrible to her once in a heated argument. No, he no longer saw Lily as the saint he used to. She was a bad friend, he realised; she denied his friendship so she could go off and shag his arch enemy. Simply put, Lily Potter was a self-satisfying bitch despite the fact she had died protecting her son which was really an act that any other decent mother would perform… she was certainly nothing special in that case.

Hermione would never be so callous, so cold. She was loyal to her friends no matter what and Severus was sure that although she could be downright mischievous and Slytherin-like, she would never ever betray him or shun him like Lily did.

He physically shook his head from those thoughts and refused to compare Hermione to Lily any more. They were more different than they were alike and he knew deep down that it was not fair to compare Hermione to Lily. He knew Hermione was the better person, no question and he would be damned if he did not take this fiasco of an opportunity to get to know her better and hopefully build up the courage to tell her he loved her.

He quickly rinsed off his razor and headed out the door with a new, determined aura around him.

* * *

Hermione sat in the library with her book and a cup of tea waiting for Severus to get ready. Her book was quite the page turner but found that she was far too nervous to concentrate on the book in front of her.

She was going out in public with Severus Snape and she was absolutely terrified that she would make an idiot out of herself somehow while in his presence. She felt as though she was going on a date with him; she took extra care with her appearance, she had butterflies in her stomach and her hands were sweating like it was going out of fashion.

_Gods, get a grip of yourself Granger! You look better than you ever have and Severus will be nothing but a perfect gentleman when you are both out. Just don't cock things up!_

She almost jumped out of her skin, swishing her tea all over the wooden flooring when Severus whispered silkily in her ear, "I am ready if you are, Hermione."

"Merlin's balls, Severus! You almost scared me half to death! You really must stop sneaking up on people like that...one day someone will react with violence." She scolded, even more annoyed with him now that he was grinning at her like a Cheshire cat.

"Now come on, Hermione… would you really act in violence against me?"

His grin made her heart flutter and she found herself grinning back at him despite being slightly pissed at him for sneaking up on her. "No, I suppose since it is you, I wouldn't act in violence, although a punch in the arm does seem like appropriate punishment for sneaking up on me!"

"Oh madam, you would wound me. Shall we head into town then?"

Hermione nodded and stood up, "Um, I doubt we can apparated to town… how exactly are we getting to Wick?"

"Albus has already taken care of that. Let's walk outside and I will show you."

* * *

"A fucking Morris Minor!? I didn't even know that they still had these bad boys on the road!" Hermione circled the car in avid excitement. As her hand caressed the paint work, Severus tried to ignore the thought that he would do anything to have her hands touch his body in a similar fashion.

"You like cars?" Severus asked, mildly impressed and horrified at the same time. He himself hated cars but it was strangely interesting to see Hermione so excited over something that was not a book or an experiment.

Hermione displayed a face of disgust, "Gods no! I absolutely abhor cars but my maternal grandfather used to drive one of these, good old Donnie." She smiled at the memory of her Grandad before continuing, "He was a lovely man and I absolutely loved this car of his; although his Morris Minor was a bottle green colour and not as modernised as this particular model. He used to pretend that it was a magical care and it could fly through the skies like Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. If only he knew the fate that awaited me when I turned eleven, I know he would have supported my magic completely. You see he passed away a few days before my ninth birthday and to be quite honest the sadness I felt while I dealt with his loss was really the catalyst in my beginning to show any magical ability. I made a flower fly from his coffin into my hand on the day of his funeral. I sneaked into the little waiting room in the church where they were keeping his body and I was so upset. I remember just thrusting my hand out to his coffin, wishing he would come back to me and bam, the flower flew into my hand. I didn't know it then but I had performed my first spell; a non-verbal accio!

I was still a child when he passed but I remember him well. He truly was a lovely man; he left me with such special memories. Sorry for getting a bit nostalgic there, I know how uncomfortable it is for people when I rabbit on about these sorts of things." She smiled ruefully and noticed that Severus was looking at her with an odd expression on his face.

She nervously tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear uncomfortably as he continued to stare at her in complete silence.

"What? Do I have lipstick on my teeth or something? Oh, I made you clock out because I was going on and on, didn't I? I am always bloody doing that, I never know when to shut my trap… sorry." She asked worriedly.

Severus seemed to snap out of his mini-space out session and shake himself into reality, "I apologise, you are just positively mesmerising when you speak of things you truly care for. Your eyes seem to sparkle and you give off this… _this aura_ of optimism. It is endearing, I assure you, do not worry and do not apologise. You have nothing to be sorry for, Hermione. If we are to become friends, I believe sharing details such as those is a positive thing, yes?" He smiled at her shocked face and knew that were he a braver man; he would have kissed her lips passionately at that particular moment.

"Yes, um, right. Can you drive? I only ever had a few lessons and I never felt like I was going to get the hang of it so, I gave up… as uncharacteristic as it sounds. Anyway I always felt that when you drive, you miss out on a lot of the scenery when you are out and about… so care to play driver?" She added bashfully.

"Never fear Professor, I can drive. I have been passed my test longer than you have been alive. Bloody hell, how old does that make me sound? That is a depressing thought indeed." His shoulders slumped slightly as old worries concerning their age difference crept back into his thoughts.

Hermione smiled and laid a comforting hand on his forearm, "You're only as young as the woman you feel, so I suggest a woman who is… say _twenty years_ your junior? And I guess you're set and I just happen to be twenty years younger so, for now, you'll just have to make do with me while we are here. You look very good for your age and no one would think there were more than a few years between us both, physically and mentally. So enough of this silly 'I'm an old man' rubbish so move your arse and get in the car. Perhaps when we are out we should pretend to be a couple, it would stop people making assumptions or asking any strange questions, don't you think? Close your mouth, Severus; you are not a cod fish…so as my chauffeur, you have to take me to the wonders of Wick. Get in the car, Snape."

Hermione gave his forearm one last squeeze with a smirk and sat herself in the car, leaving a rather pleased and slightly shocked Severus staring open mouthed at the space she had just inhabited a moment ago.

"Why of course, Miss fucking Daisy." He muttered under his breath without any real malice. Her little rant about the age difference between them was definitely encouraging and the fact that she wanted to pretend they were a couple when they were out in public only encouraged him further.

He smirked an evil smirk as his mind worked over time, assessing the things he could get away with in public in Hermione's presence. After all, he was her 'other half' while they went out shopping so he intended to act like any other man would act around the woman he loved.

_Oh yes, this little outing is going to be fun indeed. _

* * *

The drive into Wick was pretty uneventful but filled with unresolved sexual tension and awkward silences. They managed to get a parking space in a small car park at the back of the main high street and walked towards the shops.

Severus gently grasped Hermione's hand as they walked and noticed with pleasure how she smiled to herself and ran her thumb along the front of his hand.

"So _Mrs Snape_, where do you want to go first?" He asked with a smirk, enjoying the blush on her cheeks.

"Well, _dear husband_… let's just have a look around and see where the day takes us, yes? Perhaps we should go get a little cup of tea?" She suggested, leaning her body in and closer to his as they walked along the cobbled streets.

She nudged him gently as they came to a small café called 'Morag's'. "Shall we go in here for a cup of tea?"

"By all means, whatever makes my young woman happy." He drawled as he lead her into the shop.

A small, impish looking waitress approached them, "Welcome to Morag's, I am Jenni, your waitress. Please take a seat and look over the menu. I will be back to take your orders in a few minutes."

"What a lovely little café… and such nice staff." Hermione smiled as she looked around the trinkets on the walls of the establishment, halting her actions as she saw the pensive, serious look on her partner's face.

"Severus? What is the matter?" She squeezed his hand gently and followed his line of vision. There, sitting in the corner, reading a tabloid paper was none other than Tobias Snape. The man at the table turned to the waitress to ask for a refill of tea when he paused mid-sentence as he caught sight of his son and his pretty companion.

Hermione watched in concern as Severus tightened and un-tightened his fists as he looked with hate at his father. She saw the man stand and walk towards their table and she almost screamed as Severus stood and drew his wand on him, duelling stance posed.

Luckily the waitress had disappeared into the back kitchen just moments before and there were no other patrons within the café at that moment. Otherwise there would have been a lot of _obliviating_ that afternoon.

* * *

Severus felt Hermione's small hand enclose over his own, "Put down your wand, Severus. It is time to talk to him."

She felt her heart skip a beat as his gaze turned to her, no longer angry but betrayed.

"You know nothing of this man and the hell he put me and my mother through!" He spat, ripping his hand away from hers. "You know nothing!"

Hermione and Tobias watched in horror as Severus stormed past them both and left the café in a flourish.

"He will come back, just give him time to calm down." Tobias added gently, sitting at their table.

Hermione felt sorry for the defeated man and sat down on her chair once again, "I think Mr. Snape, that you and I need to talk."

* * *

_a/n: please review and let me know what you think! Thanks, Jenni_


	16. A chat with Papa

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual and powerful equal.

I will warn you that this story, like all my others will be of an adult nature. There will scenes of an erotic nature later on in this story so go no further if you are offended by fics with sexual references. Also, please do remember that this is FAN fiction – should I change the rules of the story such as using electricity in Hogwarts, it is because I am the author and can do stuff like that. You don't like it?...Please go and read the actual books because that is the only way you will find canon to Harry Potter.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review and it's only fair since I have spent many hours writing up these stories.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

**Ps – With the recent crack down on EROTICA on fan fiction, I will be uploading my stories on my own forum to be safe. Other authors, HP fan fiction and others can post their stories there and share their favourites too. We're just starting out so need as much support as possible. You can PM me and I will give you the website address.**

* * *

Severus silently fumed as he paced angrily along the harbour front as he thought over what had just occurred in the café. His father having the actual gall to approach him in public! And Hermione! Well, he just could not believe that, after all he had told her concerning his 'sperm donor', she would still insist that they all sit down and have a lovely chat over a cup of tea and a sticky bun!

"Don't make me fucking puke." He muttered under his breath as he kicked a few loose stones into the harbour waters. He knew he had to calm himself down and go back to fetch Hermione but he was frightened to return in case his father was still there. He was simply not ready to speak to the man who had caused his mother so much heartache. Not to mention the fact that he had not seen sight of him for almost 30 years. He briefly wondered what sob story his father was now feeding to his love interest, and balled his fists once again thinking of the forward, bushy haired witch.

With a large sigh, he rested on a small bench that looked over Wick Harbour in its entirety and had his mind not been such a muddled mess, he would have enjoyed the beauty of the view. He did, however, note to take Hermione for a walk up here one night… if they were speaking to each other again, that is.

He knew deep down that Hermione did not suggest that he speak to his father to be cruel or nosey but the fact that she just suggested it in general irked him beyond belief. Yes, he was in love with her and he wanted them to become close but they were in the very early stages of their friendship or rather on the edges of perhaps a romantic relationship and he felt she did not have the right to pass comment yet. Had she been his actual romantic partner or his wife, of course he would take her opinions into consideration but they had only been in Caithness for just over one day and she was already using her Gryffindor 'let's resolve everything in an evening' attitude to wangle in on his private, family affairs.

_No, that is a bit harsh. I know she just wants to make my life happy and resolve any negative things I have encountered but Merlin, she knows how to rub me up the wrong way! Hopefully by the time I get back to the café, he will be gone and I can try and patch things up with Hermione._

He stood with a sigh and stalked off in the direction of Morag's café to find Hermione.

* * *

"I am frightfully sorry about the position I have put you in with Severus, Miss…."

"Granger. My name is Hermione Granger." She answered quietly, looking at the man in front of her as he sipped at his tea. He was like Severus in his features, scarily so. It was as though she were looking at Severus in twenty years time, although his father had short greying hair and was not as tall or strongly built as Severus was. His voice was also somewhat like the potion master's but it had more of a husky property to it and a slight lilt of a northern accent could be heard too.

"Well, Miss Granger… I apologise for putting you in this awkward situation with my son. I do not mean to drive a wedge between you and him but I am extremely glad at the opportunity to be able to explain myself to someone connected with him. Perhaps once you have heard me out you could talk to him for me?" His black eyes looked up at her hopefully.

She snorted in a rather unladylike manner, "I think we will be lucky if he speaks to me ever again, we are both in the dog house it would seem."

"If he loves you, I am sure he will forgive you."

"We are not a couple Mister Snape. We are friends, work colleagues." She added shyly, a slight pain thumping in her chest as she denied that Severus loved her.

She shook herself mentally and concentrated on the man in front of her rather than his son. She knew she was in for a world of trouble when (or rather if) Severus came back to get her. Truth be told, she wouldn't be surprised if Severus left her to walk home for her interference and really, she would deserve it if she did. She was always a person who gave others the benefit of the doubt and she felt that Tobias should have his chance to talk. Hermione never believed that a fair assessment of a situation was ever gained from only knowing one side of the story. She knew it was really none of her business but if she could perhaps listen to Tobias, she might be able to mend the rift between then and let the man she loves gain a little bit of happiness and a part of his family back.

"So, what is it you want to explain then Mister Snape?" She asked politely, anxiously looking out of the window for signs of her Severus.

"Please call me Tobias. I want to explain about why I left them, Eileen and Severus. Believe me when I say I am innocent of the charges Eileen laid at my door all of those years ago… I never left her for another woman… it was the only way I could make sure that they were safe… it was the only way they would leave my family alone. I tried to make sure Severus would not go down the path of darkness as I did but I didn't know he had until it was too late. I tried to get back in touch with Eileen after the first war but it was still too dangerous for me, there was still a chance of Voldemort returning and I refused to put their lives in jeopardy although at that point Severus was beyond my help but when I finally was able to return, I found out that Eileen… my beautiful girl, had passed away in her sleep some years before and that Severus was on the road of light once again. He had survived the war…a double agent! He turned into such a brave, intelligent lad… I am so proud of him… and a teacher now to boot! You know, Miss Granger, I never stopped loving him and Eileen! They meant so much to me; I just couldn't stay around in case they came for them, my cover was blown, they knew I had a family because my legilimency shields slipped for a bloody second. I had to get away from them both, as far away as I could run. I just wish things had been different but I stand by my actions and I can only try to make amends with him now."

Hermione was captivated, confused and eager to get some clarification from Tobias about his story, "Mister Snape, I mean Tobias; you really need to slow down and start at the beginning for me. I don't understand what you are speaking about. Protect them? Protect them from what, exactly?"

Tobias looked at her gravely before he slowly slid the sleeve of his jumper up revealing a faded tattoo.

Hermione's breath caught in her chest, "Is that what I think it is?"

Tobias opened his mouth to answer when another, deeper voice spoke from behind them, "The Dark Mark."

* * *

Hermione turned to an uncharacteristically shocked Severus; his brow creased in confusion, his eyes showing both anger and concern and his mouth was open, slack.

"Alright, I will listen to you Tobias… you have fifteen minutes." Severus sat down next to Hermione without looking at her face; his eyes were very much trained on the sight of the cattle brand of the most evil organisation that graced the Wizarding world upon the skin on his father's arm.

"It is quite simple, Severus. I was a Deatheater under a false identity… they never knew about you or your mother… I, like you once were, was an agent for the side of light. "

"Under whose authority?" Severus sneered.

Tobias gave him a small smile, "Why Dumbledore's of course."

Severus sneered, "That old bastard!"

Tobias chuckled at this, "Yes, he certainly is but I am convinced the old coot means well. I was an active and top security Auror for the Ministry of Magic, basically what would now be called 'an unmentionable' although we weren't called that back then. We were affectionately known as the 'Obscuros'. Dumbledore needed a guy who was brave enough and familiar enough with dark magic to act as a spy… I jumped at the opportunity but I had no idea what I had signed up for. Your mother knew that I worked for the Ministry as an agent of sorts but she knew that no one outside of the two of us could know about my real identity. So although I was known as my birth name Tobias Snape… it was recorded that I was a muggle, dirt poor and a drunkard. Voldemort however, knew me as Tobias Angetenar: undercover spy for his precious Deatheaters while I worked at the Ministry. Unfortunately for us all, while he was having a mental tennis match of legilimency with me one day… he caught a glimpse of a woman and a young boy. As you probably know, emotions can be felt during a legilimency assault and he felt my protective husbandry role for Eileen and the father's love I felt for you. He knew, Severus. He knew I was married with a child… so I did all I could do. I apparated out of there as quick as I could, left your mother a note to say I was leaving and ran as far as I could only hoping that you would both be safe. I had to be brutal in that letter son, please understand that. I had to make sure she would not come looking for me, even if it meant breaking her heart, yours and mine, I had to make sure you were safe! I only wish that… she had not died thinking I betrayed our marriage. I loved her… so much." Tobias broke down and began to cry quietly into his cup of tea.

Hermione was surprised to find both herself in tears and a trail of water escaping from Severus's eyes too.

"So you never left us because you didn't love or want us?" Severus whispered, the crack in his voice betraying his cool demeanour.

"I have always wanted you and I have never stopped loving you. You're my son… please, please say you forgive me? Let me be part of your life once more?"

Severus saw Hermione's large, watery brown eyes look at him with love and compassion and he knew right at that moment, he needed to sort things out with his father and give the man a chance.

"I would… not be against the thought of us beginning to reconnect after hearing your story but you must remember that it will be a slow process. " He turned to Hermione, "Thank you for, yet again, surprising me with your empathy for human beings. I fear I would have never heard this story had you not been here to force me out of my pig-headedness. You truly are a marvel, Hermione Granger." He lifted her hand from his knee and kissed it gently, missing the twinkle in his father's eyes as he watched his son and his companion. It seemed that Severus was deeply in love and if the woman's reaction was anything to go by, he was pretty sure she was just as smitten.

* * *

_a/n: aaah it all worked out...yay! lol sorry it's taken me a little over a week for this update. Life has been hectic, my husband and I just bought a house and my pops hasn't been too well lately so family has, as it should, taken priority over my time. Hopefully you won't have to wait as long for my next chapter, I will try my best! Please review!_


	17. Cuddle Up?

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual, sexual and powerful equal.

Also, please do remember that this is FAN fiction – should I change the rules of the story such as using electricity in Hogwarts, it is because I am the author and can do stuff like that. You don't like it? Please go and read the actual books because that is the only way you will find anything canon to Harry Potter.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review and it's only fair since I have spent many hours writing up these stories.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

* * *

Severus, Hermione and Tobias sat drinking coffee and talking over things that had happened over the last few years for an hour or so before leaving Morag's café.

"May I come and visit you and Hermione at the cottage?" Tobias asked nervously, still slightly unbelieving that Severus had forgiven him and fate had allowed him a second chance at having a life with his only son.

"I would like that… _Dad_. Call around any time you like, we have just under three weeks to stay here and then we will head back to Hogwarts although… you would be more than welcome to visit me there should you wish to continue to get to know me." Severus added awkwardly.

"I am not messing up this miracle I have been handed. I never thought we would ever speak again, let alone you letting me back into your life. If it wasn't for this beautiful and intelligent witch, it may not have ever happened. I hope that I can get to know you better too, Hermione." Tobias flashed a charming smile and kissed her hand in quite a sensual way.

Hermione had the good grace to blush deeply and Severus merely rolled his eyes and suppressed a grin. His father was always a flirt and it seemed that Hermione had made an impression on him.

"If you ever fancy having a drink with an older man…" Tobias started.

"She will be sure to give _me_ a call, father. We shall see you soon… it's getting darker now and we better make tracks back to the cottage." Severus interrupted, giving his father a gentle warning in his tone and expression. Tobias smirked as he translated his son's message as 'hand off, she is mine!'

"Of course, well I bid you goodnight son… and Hermione. I will see you both very soon." Tobias bowed to them both before stalking off, his black jacket billowing behind him and both Hermione and Severus silently decided that that particular skill of walking must run in the Snape blood.

* * *

Neither Hermione nor Severus said anything to each other in the car on the drive home after their discussion with his father. Severus was still slightly miffed at Hermione despite the feeling of love and gratitude he felt for her intruding in on his private business. He was overjoyed that he was going to have his father back in his life but he could not help but feel a sudden sadness as he thought of his mother's death. She died thinking the man she had fallen in love with had run off with some young tart when in reality, he had left her to ensure her life and their son's life would be safe. It was like something out of a tragic romantic tale, so cruel and so unrealistic. He needed to get his head into working order before he spoke to Hermione. His anger had subsided but at the same time he felt that giving her a little bit of the silent treatment would make her worry that he was royally pissed off with her. It was the least she deserved considering he had to restrain himself from hexing her plump, little arse off initially.

Hermione, on the other hand, was feeling extremely nervous and slightly frightened. She knew Severus was bound to give her a telling off for interfering in his personal affairs but hoped that he would perhaps be grateful enough to not give her a proper dressing down. She inwardly cringed as she thought back to him in full, scowling professor mode; she had been on the end of that storm more than once and it was an experience she hoped would never happen to her again now that she was a full grown adult.

As harsh as he was, she knew that Severus was much more relaxed and forgiving than he had once been. Surely he would not hate her for butting in? Her train of thought left her feeling slightly braver, she let her eyes covertly look at his face as he drove hoping to interpret some sort of emotion from him but no, as always, his face was blank. She felt her heart begin to pound in her chest and the queasy feeling now overtaking her stomach was almost too much to bear.

* * *

The silence continued as they walked into the cottage but as the front door was shut, Hermione could not hold her tongue any longer.

She wrung her hands nervously as she stood behind him while he busied himself with the kettle, ignoring her presence completely.

"Severus, please talk to me."

He still did not acknowledge her, his concentration seemed fully on straining the tea leafs as he poured the hot water into the kettle. She boldly stood right in front of him, removing the kettle from his hands and setting it on the stove to boil.

"Please Severus. Shout at me, hex me, call me all the names under the sun… anything is better than you ignoring the fact that I even exist. I am very sorry I shoved my way into you and your father's business and I know that it was extremely rude and intrusive of me but… you have to admit that it was worth it in the end, don't you? You got your dad back… surely that has to count for something? Perhaps it makes you hate me a little bit less?"

Severus turned to her, gently took her by the shoulders and placed her down onto one of the kitchen chairs.

"Sit and be quiet until I have made the tea, please." He said quietly before he turned away to make up their cups of tea. His tone was gentle but stern and Hermione could still not tell whether or not he was still angry with her.

He then laid a hot, steamy cup of milky tea in front of her and sat on the opposite side of the table from her. Her breath caught in her throat as he reached out and took her small hand in his with a small smile gracing his handsome face.

"I am not ignoring you, Hermione. Please understand that the events of today have been rather full on. I will not be screaming or hexing you for what happened today although it is true that I was absolutely furious with you for interfering in my family's business and once I had returned to the café for you, I was ready to unleash hell on you for that but once I saw that disgusting cattle brand on my father's arm… I knew that there was more to his life than my mother and I had ever known. I often berate you for your trusting, Gryffindorish ways but if you were not as forgiving and open as you are… I do not think I would have ever given my father the opportunity to tell me his side of the story. So for that, I will be forever grateful to you. Tonight was definitely an eye opener… so much I never knew about. So much my mother should have known before she died."

Hermione squeeze his hand in comfort, "It was extremely sad… but completely necessary. You do understand that, don't you?"

"Yes, of course I do. Although I cannot help but feel a slight ache in my heart for both him and my mother; she died thinking that the man she loved was a dirty love cheat, that he did not love her or me enough to keep it in his trousers. He had to leave us both behind knowing that the only way he could keep us safe was by letting us think the worst of him. It is a rather tragic tale, is it not? I am beginning to think my life is one big tragic joke. We Snapes never seem to have much luck in life or in love for that matter. Look at my track record, in love with a memory for so long." He smiled slightly before taking his hand back, taking a sip of tea.

"You are a young man still, Severus. Plenty of time to fall in love and make something more of the life you have. You are handsome, scarily intelligent, brave and loyal. Any woman would be lucky to have you and I am a true believer that love comes to us all in our lifetime." Hermione added with a small smile of her own.

"Perhaps I have simply just missed my chance at happiness and love then? I do not see any ladies queuing up for my attentions." He hinted quietly.

"I wouldn't say that Severus… you never know, true love could be staring you right in the face… you are perhaps too preoccupied or too scared to see it." She made sure that she kept eye contact with him before she stood and began to wash out her cup. Slightly horrified at how forward she had just been she quickly changed the subject, missing the way Severus was currently eyeing her shaking behind as it wiggled from side to side as she scrubbed out her tea cup.

"I really am very sorry that I got involved with your private business, Severus. I hope that it does not stint our growing friendship and regard for each other?" She asked turning her beautiful honey brown eyes back on him.

Severus smiled at her widely as he dragged his eyes from her arse and up to her face, "As if you being a busybody Gryffindor would change the way I feel about you. I knew I was doomed the moment we agreed to be friends. I suppose I shall just have to put up with you and resign myself to this terrible fate."

Hermione snorted feeling both amused and relieved at his teasing, "Oh well that is just so good of you! Bloody martyr! I shall never know how you put up with me. Sainthood is but a step away!"

The pair shared a chuckle before adjourning to the library for a spot of light reading.

* * *

"It's absolutely bloody freezing! Why won't any of the heating charms work?" Hermione said as she shivered in their bed later that night.

"I am buggered if I know. I have a feeling that it may have something to do with our no good employer though! There, I've managed to get a small fire going but I reckon we may need to _cuddle _up together if we wish to create some heat in bed. The winters here are particularly cold." Severus blushed slightly as his mind began to present him with images of all the delicious ways he could create some heat with Hermione in bed.

"Cuddle up?" Hermione asked, her cheeks becoming a rather attractive shade of pink.

"Don't worry Hermione I won't bite."

"Not even if I want you to?" She added cheekily.

Severus could not stop the grin that was now plastered on his face, "Oh Hermione, be careful what you ask for. Now budge up and make some room for me… bloody woman taking up the whole sodding bed."

He wrapped his arms around Hermione, spooning her from behind, smelling the beautiful aroma from her hair and skin. Both could not ignore the rapid beat of the other's heart or the way every hair on their bodies stood on end at the mere contact.

He wanted to kiss the back of her neck, the curve of her shoulders and every other inch of her at the moment. Her body felt so soft and supple under his hands and he never felt so perfectly placed before. She fit perfectly against him. She was meant to be his.

Hermione wanted to kiss him so badly at that moment; he felt so strong and manly wedged behind her. She took in how soft but calloused his hands were, and his scent was making her feel lightheaded; he smelled divine and she never wanted another man wrapped around her body like this. He fit perfectly against her. He was meant to be hers.

"Good night, little busy body." Severus sighed into the back of her neck.

"Good night, my old teddy bear." She giggled.

"Why you cheeky bugger! Get to bloody sleep, goodnight." He chuckled.

"Night Severus, sweet dreams." Hermione laid her hand on top of his as they both settled down to sleep, both feeling more like a truly whole person than they had ever felt before.

* * *

_a/n: please review! I appreciate your feedback and like to hear if you like where things are going! Next few chapters are going to see the sexual tension grow between the pair and will begin to get slightly naughty (so brace yourselves... Hermione and Severus certainly will be!)_


	18. In Slumber (a bonus chapter)

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual, sexual and powerful equal.

Also, please do remember that this is FAN fiction – should I change the rules of the story such as using electricity in Hogwarts, it is because I am the author and can do stuff like that. You don't like it? Please go and read the actual books because that is the only way you will find anything canon to Harry Potter.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review and it's only fair since I have spent many hours writing up these stories.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

* * *

Severus awoke to the most shocking and heavenly sight he had ever seen; Hermione Granger was kneeling by his side, kissing up and down his chest in an extremely sensual fashion. His eyes took in the amazing sight of her with her tiny nightie bunched around her waist with her full, heavy breasts on display and they jiggled as her pert little mouth kissed his skin over and over again. He could no longer suppress the moans his mouth was desperate to voice as she rained down her hungry kisses on his flesh. He was worried that his sudden vocal alert of consciousness would make her stop her actions but she only smiled at him as she noticed he was awake. As she leant forward to kiss him, Severus grabbed her by the back of the head and crashed his lips against hers. The feelings and emotions striking through his body at that precise moment were indescribable.

The woman he loved with a passion was currently kissing him with hunger, one hand caressing his bare chest while the other was buried in his hair while her soft and supple breasts felt like silk against his bare chest.

The kiss became more and more heated as their tongues battles for dominance and Hermione situated herself in a straddling position on top of Severus's growing erection.

He managed to catch his breath as Hermione began kissing down his neck while she rubbed herself against his bulge. When his hands finally came into contact with her breasts, Hermione gave out a low, wild moan.

"Hermione... are... are you sure you want this?" He said breathlessly, being the gentleman and giving her the chance to back out despite his head swirling at the wondrous things she was currently doing with her mouth.

"I want you. I'm in love with you Severus. Just take me, even if it is just for one night. Let me feel what it's like to belong to you."

As he looked at her in wonder, he was shocked to see that she was now fully naked and beginning to lower herself onto his rock hard cock.

In a flash Severus found himself in an altogether different situation.

Severus almost groaned in frustration as he realised that the experience of Hermione's wandering hands and mouth were nothing but a dream. Every cloud does have a silver lining though, he thought, as he looked around the room… he still had the beautiful brunette in his arms. Granted it was not as much of an arousing experience as the dream but it was equally as perfect and beautiful.

He couldn't help but feel his heart swell as he took in the sight of her sleeping so peacefully, cuddled into his side.

She looked like a little woodland nymph with her curly, gorgeous hair fanned out on the pillow behind her and her rosy cheeks. He stifled a laugh as he heard her snort in her slumber.

He suppressed a moan as she hooked her leg up and around his waist, the top of her thigh resting beneath his throbbing erection.

_Holy fuck, I need to get rid of this stiffy before she wakes up or she will think I am a bloody pervert and as much I am a pervert for her… I don't want her knowing that just yet! Christ, it is as hard as a rock. Fuck me, Hermione if your real self is anywhere near as confident as my dream Hermione… I will never let you leave our bed chambers! _

He tried to untangle himself from the busty witch but she clung onto him like a limpet; there was no escape without waking her.

"Mmm… Severus… harder … oh, Severus!" She whispered a moan in her sleep, stopping Severus from moving at all. He was frozen in shock as he looked onto Hermione as she began to grind her hips against the side of his thigh. Although she had knickers on, he could feel how wet she was from whatever dream she was having. Severus could hardly believe that she would be dreaming about him of all people and felt both a swell in his trousers and his heart. The heat and moisture on his leg was getting him extremely aroused and he could hardly stop his traitorous hand from grabbing her gyrating arse as she vigorously rode him while she tried to find completion in her dream. Her buttocks were firm and meaty, just how he liked them, and he almost came in his trousers as she shuddered and groaned out his name as she halted her assault on his leg.

He watched in horror as she began to wake up slowly and gasped as her hand flew to her private area below the covers. She slowly sat up and turned her head in his direction, praying that he was still asleep.

"Thank the Gods I didn't wake him. Christ, Hermione must you be such a fucking wanton even when you're sleeping!?" She whispered to herself angrily before she pushed herself out of the bed and padded towards the bathroom, leaving a very flattered and deeply frustrated Severus in the bedroom.

However, he deeply enjoyed the knowledge that Hermione really did find him sexually attractive at least and that was half the battle.

* * *

Severus couldn't hide his smirk.

Hermione couldn't hide her bright red face.

"Did you sleep well, Hermione?" He asked casually as they quietly had their breakfast.

He was pleased to see her face go a deeper shade of crimson as she looked down at her plate, "Yes, I slept quite well Severus. And you?"

"Quite… invigorating, I must say. I daresay I have not slept so well since before the war and of course, what man would not feel well rested waking up to a beautiful, young witch lying by his side?"

Hermione almost choked on her tea as she sputtered her beverage over the table, "Christ, Severus! It's only 10 o'clock in the morning… it's too early for such charm!"

"Oh it's never too early for charm... or in our case, never too late."

Hermione coughed in an attempt to hide her embarrassment before she quickly changed the subject, "Um, so what are we going to do today then?"

Severus smirked at her and raised an eyebrow, "I thought we could perhaps finish the shopping trip we started yesterday. We did not get very far, did we?"

"Sounds perfect."

He watched her swaying behind as she left the room to get changed and he couldn't help but feel like he was finally making progress with the pretty witch.

* * *

_a/n: just a wee taster chapter for you lovely lads and lassies! I will be updating again soon but wanted to give you a little dirty treat since this story has been tame so far in comparison with my other stories. Do not fear, there is much more delicious happenings to come and perhaps old Severus will experience a bit of embarrassment himself when he gives into his urges. Please review! The more you review, the quicker I will update! Thanks, Jenni _


	19. Severus the Flirt

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual, sexual and powerful equal.

Also, please do remember that this is FAN fiction – should I change the rules of the story such as using electricity in Hogwarts, it is because I am the author and can do stuff like that. You don't like it? Please go and read the actual books because that is the only way you will find anything canon to Harry Potter.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review and it's only fair since I have spent many hours writing up these stories.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

* * *

Hermione and Severus walked quietly along the high street of Wick, popping in and out of a few of the stores as they came to them. The town was not over flowing with shops but it would be enough to kill an afternoon perusing the wares they had to offer.

"Oh Severus look, a book shop. May we have a look inside? Please?" Hermione pleaded, squeezing his hand and flashing him one of her winning smiles. Severus was momentarily floored by how her smile could make his heart skip a beat and how lovely it felt having her small, delicate hand in his and in public no less. He knew that they were posing as a couple but still, it felt amazing that she was not embarrassed or awkward about showing him affection in public, pretend or not.

He gave her one of his sexiest smirks before he stroked his thumb along the inside of her hand as he led them towards the book shop. "Hermione, you are not with your bone headed companions now, I happen to love books. You do not need to ever beg me to look in a book shop with you; I will never turn down a chance to engage in reading. It is a love I believe we both share, yes?"

Hermione really was tempted to say, "Yes but I love you much more." But she pushed that revealing statement to the back of her mind.

_Now is not the time, old girl._

"It is indeed a love of mine, Severus but you've already been in almost all of the shops because of my avid curiosity and I know how men hate shopping. You have been so patient with me… I suppose I didn't want to spoil how well we're getting on by dragging you into yet another shop." Her face was slightly flushed in the northern wind and Severus could not help but think of how beautiful she was to him.

"Well you can make it up to me by buying me a coffee in Morag's café later, perhaps?" He asked with a shrug and a smirk.

"Hmm… I believe I can manage that although I don't want you thinking I have became a soft touch."

"Oh Hermione, I believe you would be soft to touch but never a soft touch." He added with a sexy grin.

Hermione could not help the gush she felt in between her legs whenever he grinned at her like that; the man was simply sex on legs.

"I can't believe I have never seen the charmer in you before now, Severus." She snuggled down into her coat more as they walked towards the shop in an attempt to hide her blush.

"Yes, well Hogwarts does not usually allow me to feel so relaxed and I think we were both too busy trying to 'out do' one another. For once, I think Albus had a stellar idea in making us get to know one another."

"You don't know how pleased I am at how things have worked out. I like being privileged enough to see this side of you. It makes me feel sort of special, I suppose."

Severus smiled at her, "You are special, Hermione. More special than you will ever know."

The couple stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity, both too scared to make a move, yet both so desperate to take the next step. When Severus finally moved closer towards her, a rather noisy car sped passed them on the street, breaking their eye contact and the intense mood.

"Shall we go inside then?" Severus asked in a rather hoarse voice, motioning to the shop doorway. With a nod, Hermione stepped inside with her heart still racing like a runaway train.

_Was he going to kiss me? Gods how I wish he would_. Hermione thought as she looked around the bookshelves.

The shop was quite quaint and very cosy as they entered, a sudden gust of heat meeting them. It was rather pleasant after spending so long walking around in the highland temperatures.

"Thank Christ we can get a bit of heat, I think my fingers were about to fall off." Severus growled.

Hermione giggled as she took both his hands in hers, "Well we can't have the Potions Master losing his fingers now, can we? Never fear, I will keep them warm."

Severus was sure he had never wanted to kiss her more than at that precise moment. It was such a small act of caring and warmth that it made every hair on his body stand on end. Her small hands rubbing his to create some heat were enough to make his knees go weak. _That woman will truly be the bloody death of me._ He thought with an inward smile.

"Watch out, Hermione," He said in his most sexy tone, "Anyone would think we were truly a couple. You are such a flirt."

Hermione giggled and blushed a pretty shade of pink, "I learned from the master it seems then. I apologise."

"I wasn't bloody complaining. Do carry on." He strode passed with a saucy smirk, giving himself an air of cool and calm. Realistically, he was sweating like a beast and his heart was pounding in his chest. Severus Snape just did not _do_ flirting. He was supposed to be an incredibly awkward and unpleasant man but this bloody woman had smooshed his brain into pink, squishy love goo. He shook his head in frustration, quickly picking up a book and pretending to read as Hermione stepped towards him yet again.

A few seconds passed in silence when Severus finally looked up in confusion at his companion, expecting her to have said something as she walked towards him. Hermione was looking at him with a wide grin and one eye brow raised.

"What?" He growled, annoyed by her haughty stance and expression. He always hated feeling like he had missed a joke.

"Oh nothing Severus, I am just going to browse the books over there. Enjoy your erm_… reading_ material."

Severus wanted the ground to swallow him up as he glanced down at the cover, "The Joy of Sex… you have got to be fucking kidding me."

Hermione's melodious laughter was heard echoing around the shop as she walked away from him shaking her head.

* * *

_a/n: just a short one for you all. We have just moved into our brand new house and we wont have internet until next Wednesday so I am currently stealing my parents internets! Please review! I will update soon!_


	20. Breakthrough

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual, sexual and powerful equal.

Also, please do remember that this is FAN fiction – should I change the rules of the story such as using electricity in Hogwarts, it is because I am the author and can do stuff like that. You don't like it? Please go and read the actual books because that is the only way you will find anything canon to Harry Potter.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review and it's only fair since I have spent many hours writing up these stories. PS my PMs are not letting me reply for some reason so please do not think I am ignoring you, I would never do that and as soon as FF sort this problem, I will reply to the many PMs I have been sent over the past week.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

* * *

While they both viewed the book selection the small shop had to offer, Hermione took a moment to think over how wonderful and surprising the past few days had been. She was almost certain that Severus found her attractive despite the still convinced part of her brain that thought she was about as good looking as a troll, and she was also aware of what a nice person Severus truly was. She already knew that he was brave and she knew he was intelligent and those facts had been part of . the reason why she fell so deeply in love with him despite his prickly and somewhat frightening personality, but the past few days had allowed her the time to see him in a completely different light. Although he was as sarcastic and quick tempered as he had ever been, she saw the friendlier, talkative, clumsy and flirtatious side of him which was something she would have never imagined seeing in her dizziest day dreams during all the time she had known him.

So far their 'vacation' had been a whirlwind of emotions but she found that she was enjoying herself immensely as she was almost certain that she would have never had the opportunity to get the real Severus Snape if Albus had not interfered, as he always tended to do. The old man could be incredibly annoying at the best of times but she had to admit that his sneakiness was a credit to him and to her on this particular occasion.

****  
Severus's thoughts were more along the lines of what an idiot he looked when Hermione saw him pretending the read 'The Joy of Sex'. He was not a cool man in nature despite the demeanour he portrayed. He was actually quite a nervous person since the war had passed, he had the years of torture under the Dark Lord's reign to thank for that, and he noticed that his nervousness was more pronounced whenever Hermione was around him. Love was strange, confusing and frustrating not to mention downright confusing to Severus.

_It's more trouble than what it is bloody worth. Actually no, if it means I get to spend the rest of my days by her side, I would live through both wars all over again. She is worth all the trouble in the world. _He stole a glance at her as she read_. She is worth everything. Merlin when did I become such a romantic sap?_

This strong willed and beautiful Gryffindor did strange things to him and he wasn't completely sure if he liked this change in himself but he reckoned that if he was to allow himself to hope for a life with her, he would either need to get used to being a dithering idiot in her presence or hope that with time he would grow out of it as they grew closer together. Not wanting to think too much into his feelings for her in the middle of a book shop, he decided that a bit of teasing was in order.

"So, Miss Know It All…do you see anything you like the look of?" He asked her as he stepped behind her, his breath on the back of her neck. Hermione's eyes closed briefly, savouring the feeling of him breathing on her exposed skin before she slowly turned to him and raised an eyebrow, "There are many things in this room that I like the look of." She replied saucily, sure to let her eyes wander across his expansive and muscular chest before she looked into his dark, intense stare.

"Indeed?"

She felt a pulse in between her legs as she saw the lust in his eyes and the crack in his voice.

"Have _you _seen anything you like the look of?" She asked him, taking a small step closer, hardly believing she had the nerve to speak to him like this. Hermione, although an attractive woman, was never demonstratively seductive… ever but something about Severus made her feel like a proper female. Perhaps it was because he simply oozed masculinity or perhaps it was because her attraction to him was becoming so strong that she was tired of waiting for fate to finally happen, she wasn't sure but she whatever it was, it was making her much more confident and she found that she rather liked that.

Severus looked directly down Hermione's top, his eyes slowly taking in the curve of her neck up to her plump, red lips.

"Hmm… there may be one thing in this room I like the look of. Something I would like to take to bed tonight and devour for hour upon hour."

Hermione blushed slightly and licked her lips nervously. Unknown to her, that action pulsed straight down Severus's manhood, making him hard almost instantly.

"Care to share what it is that has captured the attentions of the illustrious Severus Snape?"

_Please, please, please just tell me you like the look of me so we can go home and I can shag you until neither of us can see, think or stand straight_! Her mind screamed.

_I could just tell her now but where's the fun? Saucy little minx needs taken down a notch, it is only fair since she gave me a stiffy in public!_ His mind said with a chuckle.

"I don't mind sharing what it is, Hermione although you may not be able to handle it when I tell you." His mouth was closer to hers now and neither of them could ignore the way their hearts skipped.

"Oh I can handle anything you throw my way, Severus. I am a very conscientious and mature young woman you know, quite up for anything."

He leaned into her, so his mouth was directly at her ear. Hermione was almost squealing at this point and Severus almost lost his resolve at the scent of her luscious curls.

"I want…"

"Yes?"

"I want…"

"Tell me…" She whispered.

"I want… to buy this fine example of a book."

He quickly pulled back from her and grabbed the tome from the shelf behind him, hiding a smirk.

Hermione quickly tried to hide her disappointment and embarrassment at being so turned on but as soon as he turned back to look at her, her blush gave her away.

"What book?" She asked, unable to keep the annoyance out of her voice. _He was so close to telling me, I just know it! _

"'_Potions for Dunderheads'_ by S. Prince? Severus, you wrote this!" She said half amused, half flabbergasted.

"It is the only decent bloody book in this piss poor excuse of a store." He growled, not really meaning it.

"Oh you bloody man! Only decent book indeed! If you were chocolate you would eat yourself!" She chuckled.

He raised an eyebrow and smirked at her, "Oh I can think of someone much more attractive I would rather _eat_… chocolate or not."

And with that he swept passed her and went to pay for his book at the counter.

"Fucking tease." She grumbled before following him out the shop.

* * *

Later that night they sat by the open fire, both with a book in their laps drinking tea in companionable silence. Severus couldn't help but think Hermione looked even more beautiful in the light of the coal fire. It gave her an ethereal-like glow as though she were a goddess.

Sensing his eyes on her, she slowly looked up at him through her long lashes, "So, when are you meeting with your father next?"

Severus slowly closed his book, "I believe he will be coming over for lunch tomorrow, if you don't mind of course?"

"Oh of course I don't mind. I'll be sure to make myself scarce. I could go down and get to know Minerva's relative who live in the next field, David and…um…"

"Daniel." Severus hissed. "I do not want you hanging around with those two, despite the elder of them seeming like a decent sort of fellow. The other one looks at you in a most inappropriate way. You would do well to be careful of that one."

Hermione blushed slightly turned on at the tone of possessiveness in Severus's voice. "Oh don't be so protective. I think they are nice enough boys and completely harmless… and before you bloody start, I fought in the war too you know. I can handle myself quite fine in dangerous situations but I very highly doubt that any harm would come to me if I nipped over there anyway. Minerva would kill them if any harm came to me anyway."

"Forget Minerva, I would Avada them into oblivion if they ever touched a hair on your head." He sneered.

Hermione could see by the way Severus had his hands now balled into tight fists that the topic of Minerva's cousins, or rather one of the cousins in particular. Hermione thought Daniel was a nice boy but he was totally not her type, no, her type was currently sitting directly over from her in what seemed like a jealous rage.

"How about I make a deal with you?" She tried, smiling at him gently.

Severus looked at her warily, "Name your terms."

"I will leave you and your father to have a cup of tea by yourselves.."

"…Hermione I do not think…"

"…let me bloody finish, Severus!" She chuckled.

He at least had the decency to look sheepish, "I am sorry, pray continue."

"Thank you. As I was saying, I will leave you and your father to have a cup of tea by yourself for one hour. In this hour, I am going to see David and Daniel at the next cottage to have a look around their farm and get to know them a bit better. I will carry my wand on me at all times and if I am not back at this cottage precisely an hour after I first left, you have my permission to come over to their house and seek me out. If I run into any trouble at all, I will send you my patronus. Now, how does that sound?" She stood as she finished speaking and knelt down in front of his chair, taking his balled fists into her hands and flattening them out. She smiled gently at him as she caressed his hands. "See, a safe and satisfactory solution for both of us. Stop getting yourself into a complete tizzy, I am a grown woman who can protect herself, not that I am complaining about having your protection either mind you. But you need time alone with your Dad to talk over things and I am only just in the next field if you need me plus I shall only be gone for an hour, nothing sinister is going to happen, nothing sinister whatsoever."

Severus's lips were pressed into a thin line, although feeling her hands caress his as they were was making it very hard for him to keep up his disgruntled demeanour.

"An hour then and I mean strictly an hour only young lady. Do not make me come over there and get you."

Hermione shot him one of her winning smiles and hugged him tight to her.

"An hour, I promise."

She felt her heart skip a beat as his hands slowly came to rest on her waist as she hugged him; it was such a simple action but it made her insides melt. Severus didn't want to let her go, her body gelled to his with perfection. The smell of her was particularly intoxicating and it took all of Severus's will to stop himself from placing small kisses on her exquisite neck.

After a few wondrous seconds wrapped in each other's arms they slowly released the other from the hug but as they found themselves face to face, they suddenly stopped their decent. Severus's hands lay loosely on Hermione's waist while hers settled on each of his forearms.

Their head slowly gravitated towards each other, their lips getting closer and closer to touching.

Hermione's nerves got the better of her and she began to blurt out exactly how she felt for him, "Severus, I need to tell you…"

His hand came up to her face, his thumb smoothing the skin of her cheek "Ssh, Hermione. It's alright; I have something I need to tell you too but all in good time. For now, just let things happen."

Severus's lips were almost a centimetre from hers when the fireplace suddenly flashed green and the face of Albus Dumbledore appeared.

"Severus my boy, are you there!?" He shouted, causing the pair to spring apart in an effort to compose themselves back to normal quickly. Hermione quickly retreated back to her chair while Severus stood smoothing out his robes.

"Yes, Headmaster I am here, as is Hermione." He turned his still smouldering eyes towards his companion in an attempt to show her how he was both aroused by what had almost materialised and the regret he had that they were interrupted.

"Ah good, I was not interrupting anything was I?" Albus asked, the smugness in his voice making Severus want to throttle him. He knew fine well that he had interrupted something!

"Um… not at all Headmaster, we were discussing a rather serious topic but I am sure we can continue our discussion at a later time?" She asked, turning her eyes from Albus to Severus.

"I promise, we shall finish our discussion later, Hermione." Severus gave her a small smile, his heart beating wildly with hope and love for the beautiful woman before him.

"Thank Merlin for that then." She exclaimed quietly, an attractive blush forming on her cheekbones.

Albus coughed loudly in an attempt to get his professor's attentions, "I am afraid, Severus that I need you to return to Hogwarts tonight for a few hours. Margo Clements father has passed away this evening and she is refusing to speak to any teacher but her head of house. Could you spare him for a while, Hermione?"

"Oh golly, of course I can spare him for that Albus. What a poor girl. What are you waiting for? Go and see to your pupil." She said to Severus, compassion and concern for the girl evident on her face.

"You are sure you will be fine alone here?" Severus asked.

Hermione stood and gave his hand a comforting squeeze as she came to stand beside him at the fire, "I will be fine and I should still be awake on your return… to continue our discussion. But if I cannot fight sleep, we can continue in the morning?"

Severus nodded his head and squeezed her hand back, "I will not be long. Be careful, floo if you need anything."

"Yes yes, now go!" She shooed him off into the fireplace with a fond smile, her eyes shining with the love she had for him. "I'll see you when you get back."

"…until later then, Hermione. Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry" With a whoosh of green flames Severus was gone and Hermione was left to think over the amazing events that had just occurred while anticipating his return to finish their 'discussion'.

* * *

Severus finally returned to the cottage in the wee small hours, only to find Hermione in bed half asleep.

"How did it go?" She asked groggily.

"Horrible, as expected. Come, we should sleep. You need the rest and only Merlin knows I do too." He stroked a strand of hair behind her ear before turning and beginning to get dressed.

"But I thought we were going to discuss…" His heart swelled at the hurt look on her face, he had been worried that when he returned she would have come to her senses and changed her mind.

"We will discuss it in the morning since father is not coming over until the afternoon. I would rather have a clear head before I discuss such a delicate subject. I am, I must admit, very relieved that you still wish to discuss it with me. I had thought you would have wanted to forget." He said with his head lowered trying to hide his blush.

"Forget? For someone with such intelligence, you really are very silly sometimes Severus! Get into bed." She said with a smile.

"Good night Severus, sweet dreams."

Her heart skipped a beat as he kissed her on the cheek, "Good night, beautiful Hermione."

He quickly extinguished the lights and closed his eyes, glad that she could not see his cheesy smile or roaring red face. Hermione stared into the darkness with a fantastic feeling that her life would start becoming much more enjoyable once the sun came up.

* * *

_a/n: sorry it's taken so long! We still have no internet, bloody Sky ballsed our engineer appointment up and now we wont have an internet connection until January! So stealing mum and dad's internet again. Will try to update within the next few days to make up for the long gap here. Please review!_


	21. Good afternoon

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual, sexual and powerful equal.

Also, please do remember that this is FAN fiction – should I change the rules of the story such as using electricity in Hogwarts, it is because I am the author and can do stuff like that. You don't like it? Please go and read the actual books because that is the only way you will find anything canon to Harry Potter.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review and it's only fair since I have spent many hours writing up these stories. PS my PMs are not letting me reply for some reason so please do not think I am ignoring you, I would never do that and as soon as FF sort this problem, I will reply to the many PMs I have been sent over the past week.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

* * *

Hermione awoke to the sound of a motorbike engine outside of the cottage the next morning.

"Who the fuck is that at this time of the morning?" She muttered under her breath, she turned to see Severus snoring quietly, his gorgeously naked torso on show with one hand draped lazily over her waist. She smiled at that.

_I could so get used to this_. She thought before casting the tempus charm to find out the time.

"Fuck me! Severus we've slept in…" She shrieked as there was a knock at the front door.

"Go back to sleep…know it all…" Severus mumbled without opening an eye.

Hermione growled in frustration, jerking Severus awake with a shove.

"What the bloody hell, Granger!?" He sneered, sitting up with a scowl on his face.

_Ok so he is not a morning person or rather he doesn't like being shoved awake_. She thought with a grimace.

"Your father, I am assuming it's him anyway, is currently knocking on the front door. It is 12 o'clock in the afternoon which means that we have grossly overslept! Now get your arse in gear and go answer the door. I am certainly not opening the door in my nightdress unless you want your father to see me in such a state of undress?" She smirked remembering how Severus had become jealous when his father flirted with her at the cafes a few days before.

Severus's eyes slowly slid down her body appreciatively before he scowled at her once again, "Fine. I will bloody answer the door. Cover yourself up woman, I do not want him to see you dressed so scantily, it is inappropriate."

"Inappropriate for whom, may I ask?" She raised an eyebrow in a very Severus like fashion.

"Only I should…" Severus struggled as he tried to explain, "…we have not had our discussion so I cannot pass comment at this moment." He ruffled his hair as he got out of bed and pulled on a shirt.

"Oh come on Severus… tell me." She pushed with a coy smile.

Severus rolled his eyes and crossed his arms, staring her down. "Alright I will tell you. You must change your attire because I do not want my father or any other man seeing you in such a state of dress."

Hermione stood up from the bed, making sure to sway her hips as she walked towards him with a smirk on her face. "You don't want any other man seeing me in such a state of dress because…?"

Severus began to fidget, "…because…"

Hermione was standing straight in front of him now, her face mere inches away from his own.

"…yes?" She pushed.

"… Because, you are mine and I refuse to share you." He growled out.

"Oh? Is that all? Good, I was afraid you were going to say that you didn't like what I was wearing in general. Now get your shirt on… I don't want any of the local girls to catch a glimpse of what a sexy body you have. If I am yours then you are mine and mine only. Hurry now, your father is waiting patiently at the door." Hermione flashed him a brilliantly bright smile as she stood on her tip toes and kissed the tip of his nose before running from the room and slamming the bathroom door behind her.

Severus stood for a moment, unable to catch his breath. He had finally told her that he wanted her and she was pleased about it. She said he was hers… she sounded possessive but Severus found that he quite liked it. A woman had never been possessive of him before; it made him feel wanted. It made him finally feel as though he meant something to someone. He felt like dancing a jig as he walked to the front door to greet his father. Severus Snape was finally going to get his girl.

* * *

It was sometime later before Hermione emerged from the bathroom looking and smelling like dream. Both Severus and Tobias stopped mid conversation to appreciate the sight of her as she waltzed into the room.

"Good afternoon, Hermione." Tobias said silkily, pressing a light kiss on the top of her hand, enjoying the way his son tutted and rolled his eyes at the scene.

"Hello Tobias. Are you well?" She asked with a bright smile; she just couldn't seem to stop smiling, she was so happy.

"Indeed I am. More well than I have ever been. I have my family back and I could not be happier at the chance Severus has given me. My attempts at explaining to him would have all been for nought had it not been for you. You will never know how much I value your friendship to my son, you are good for him."

"…as he is for me." Hermione answered, her eyes never leaving the sexy dark potions master. Severus smiled at her, his eyes bright and kind so full of love for the woman in front of him.

"Oh so that's how it is eh? You move fast son. A few days ago you were merely colleagues but it seems that things have progressed?" Tobias asked with a grin. Hermione could not help but recognise that Tobias was indeed a very handsome man despite his advancing years. It was not hard to see where Severus had inherited the dark eyes and sexy voice from at all but she still had to admit that no one could beat her Severus.

_Her Severus_. She almost squealed at the thought.

Severus again tutted and tried, rather unsuccessfully, to hide his own pleased grin, "Yes father we have finally admitted that we are interested in more than just friendship but we have yet to gain an opportunity to properly discuss it so until we have I will not be talking about the subject until the good lady here and I have spoken first."

"Ah, so my flirtatious ways finally knocked him into action. Good, good! Well let's have our little update on yours and my lives and I will let you and this beautiful witch get down to the nitty gritty of discussions." Again Tobias grinned before taking a small sip of tea, his eyes playful.

"Will you stop winding him up?" Hermione chuckled, "I will, no doubt, see you soon Tobias and I will see you in a short while Severus." She smiled at them both before leaving the room.

* * *

"Hermione…"

Just as she was about to leave the house, she turned to find Severus in the doorway of the living room. He quickly but quietly closed the door before slowly walking towards her.

He slipped one hand through her hair and rested it against her neck, the other found solace on her small, curvy waist. His forehead touched hers as their eyes made contact, "One hour."

"I promise." She whispered, trying to stop her heart from beating out of her chest.

"Be careful…" He whispered back before he slowly and sensually touched her lips with his. The sensation they both felt was explosive; hairs standing on end, goose-bumps. Her hands gripped at his collar, as they delved deeper into the kiss. Their bodies were now as close as they could be fully clothes as they kissed away years of frustration and hidden attraction. Severus's large hands now grabbed Hermione's rather stacked behind as he pressed her against the wall. Their tongues began to battle for dominance, the lower halves of their bodies seeming to press so close that it would soon become painful; begging to join together in the most carnal of acts. They just couldn't get enough of each other.

"Ahem, hem…" came from the doorway.

The pair shot apart as if they were guilty, horny teenagers, looking up to find Tobias Snape looking rather amused.

"If you two could refrain from dry humping against the lobby wall while I visit, it would be much appreciated."

Severus had the grace to blush, "Dad…please… bugger off for a second will you?"

"Certainly. Good bye Hermione." He sniggered before disappearing behind the wooden door.

Hermione giggled before giving Severus another but smaller kiss, "I'll be back in an hour… then we can talk… and maybe do some more kissing?"

Severus gave out a low, breathy chuckle, "Sounds like a plan. Hurry back."

He kissed her lips once more before drawing his heated gaze from her flushed face and entering the other room with his father.

Hermione touched her lips in disbelief, "Well, fuck me sideways. He's finally mine."

Severus and Tobias heard her giggle as she slammed the door and made her way down to Daniel and David's cottage.

* * *

_a/n: It's almost Christmas! So I thought I would give you a small little chapter with a smooch (finally) as a present from me. I really appreciate all your support so far. I hope this makes you smile. Have a wonderful Christmas and I wish you all the best for 2013! Updates to follow soon! xxx_


	22. Hands off!

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual, sexual and powerful equal.

Also, please do remember that this is FAN fiction – should I change the rules of the story such as using electricity in Hogwarts, it is because I am the author and can do stuff like that. You don't like it? Please go and read the actual books because that is the only way you will find anything canon to Harry Potter.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review and it's only fair since I have spent many hours writing up these stories. PS my PMs are not letting me reply for some reason so please do not think I am ignoring you, I would never do that and as soon as FF sort this problem, I will reply to the many PMs I have been sent over the past week.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

* * *

Minerva paced in front of her husband with a scowl evident on her face, "Tobias was alive all that time and you never thought to tell Severus? I could hardly speak when I read Hermione's letter! You knew that he would have understood his father's situation if you had just told him! We almost lost Severus so many times during the war…those times when he just gave up… when he thought he had nothing to live for. The only thing that kept him going was protecting Harry for Lily's sake but had he known that his father was not a cheating, lying prick… we could have saved the lad so much heartache and we could have given him some hope that he still had some semblance of a family out there to fight for! I swear sometimes, Albus Dumbledore, you are more Slytherin than Salazar himself! I am absolutely furious with you!"

"It was for the greater good my love…"

"Don't you start with that greater good shite! You were being a manipulative bugger as per usual. I know you were the head of the order and I know you had goals to achieve and a war to win but sometimes Albus the way you approach things is just too… unfeeling and cold. Your actions shock me to the core sometimes because you are such a loving person to me. It is hard for me to believe that the man I love can be so ruthless when toiling with the lives of others. I am so disappointed with you."

Albus frowned as he looked onto his wife of many years, "Minnie, I can only apologise and say that at the time I felt that what I had done was for the better for all parties concerned. I admit that, like any foolish man, I was blinded by power and could not see past my goal to achieve the end of the war. I had to be ruthless. I had to break hearts and ruin lives. War is never easy but there is never a nice way to play during a battle… not even to your own platoon. Please do not think ill of me, my love. Can you not see that I tried to make amends this time? Tobias is back in Severus's life and I know it is partly because Hermione was there to sooth Severus's quick biting temper. I also wrote to Severus and confirmed what his father had told him; unable to trust too easily, Severus had written to me after he had spoken with his father so I could confirm some of the points his father brought up. I know I shall never be fully redeemed for all the actions I took during both wars but please support me as I try to do what good I can to allow myself some acts of penance. Forgive me Minerva."

Minerva's blue eyes looked into her husband's, her temper much calmer than it had been a few short minutes before.

"Of course I forgive you. You just annoy and frustrate me to the point of exploding sometimes. I will support your so called 'acts of penance' but do not expect me to simply let matters like this go without being discussed when I find out about them."

Albus stood and took his upset wife's hands in his, "Agreed. How about we both give Severus and Hermione a visit for tea tomorrow? I shall try to clear the air with Severus face to face, would that make you happy my dear?"

Minerva gave him a small smile, "That sounds like a fine plan. I have missed seeing them both even though they have been away for little more than a few days."

"That's settled then. Tomorrow we shall dine with the two love birds!"

"Severus in love and being loved back… I never thought I would see the day. I am so very happy for him though; the boy deserves a little bit of happiness after all the years of turmoil and chaos he has suffered." She smiled ruefully.

"I completely agree. See? My meddling ways are not all bad darling."

"Yes I suppose once in the 60 years I have known you is quite the occurrence."

Albus chuckled, "You are lucky I know you are madly in love with me or I might take offence to that."

* * *

Tobias looked at his son with proud and amused eyes when he came back into the room after bidding farewell to Hermione, "Well, well, well… you _are_ the fast mover."

Severus rolled his eyes and pour himself and then his father a cup of tea, "You may be surprised to find that I am not the fast mover you think me to be. Believe me when I say that it has been a few years coming. All I can say is, for once, I am thankful that Albus is an interfering busy body who saw fit to send myself and Hermione away for this… vacation."

Sipping slowly at his tea, Tobias looked at his son, all evidence of the mirth in his eyes gone. "She is a good woman. Never let her go. Never let anyone put you in a situation where you have to leave her. Never make that a choice to consider. I learned that the hard way."

"You know Mum never stopped loving you, despite what she thought you had done. She would talk to me about it, usually at New Years when she had imbibed a bit too much alcohol than what was good for her. She missed you terribly but I cannot say that she ever blamed you per say. It was more that she blamed herself for you leaving. If she had made more effort with her appearance or if she had paid you a bit more attention, she thought that would have changed how things had happened but I am sure she knew deep down that she was in denial. She made up the story about you being dead to save herself embarrassment, I think. It was not that she hoped that you were dead… it was just that the story made it easier for her to deal with. It is bad enough to be rejected by the one you love without it being aired as public gossip. You know how she hated that sort of thing. You do not understand what a relief it is for me to know that you were the man I remembered; honourable and trustworthy. I should have never believed that you could have been so cold and callous to us both. Not with an excuse of another woman anyway. Forgive me for that particular oversight Dad."

"There is nothing to forgive my son. You were supposed to hate me and never want to see me again. It was part of my plan and it saved you both from harm. Well, it saved your mother from harm… I had not anticipated that you would become a Deatheater as I had been. That was a most unpleasant discovery for me, I tell you."

Tobias gave a nervous chuckle before he grasped his son's wrist on the table surface, "It killed me to leave you both and it killed me to see you heading down that path to darkness. You will never believe how proud I am of you. You fought against the temptation of darkness and risked your life to undo all of the wrong you had participated in. You turned to the side of light and you saved so many lives in doing so. To know that I have a hero for a son makes my heart swell with so much love. And now look at you; an exemplary educator with the most beautiful and superbly intelligent witch by his side. You are a lucky man."

Severus grinned, "Aaaaand we are back to the topic of Hermione. Give it up father, she is mine"

Tobias chuckled and straightened his collar, "You never know she may enjoy in the attentions of the suave and sophisticated older gentleman."

"She does actually, hence why she is dating me. Keep your hands off. I am quite protective if you haven't already noticed."

"Calm down Severus, as if I would. I know you don't want to discuss this before you have had a talk with Hermione but just answer me one question?"

Severus raised a lazy eyebrow, "One question and that is all until I have spoken with her."

"Do you think that you will ask for her hand? I know it is early days but I knew within minutes of meeting your mother that she was going to be the woman I would marry one day. Seeing how close and intense yourself and the lovely Hermione are… I was wondering if you had similar feelings with her?"

Severus answered without hesitation, "Yes, if she will have me."

"That's wonderful son. Now… any sandwiches for your dear old dad?"

Glad that his father had finally changed the subject, Severus set about making some lunch for the two of them whilst keeping an eye on the ticking clock in the corner.

_One hour._

* * *

Little did Severus know that in just over an hour, his life would once again steer into chaos with Hermione at the centre of it.

* * *

_Teaser for chapter 23:_

_Severus, please find me... I can't find my bloody wand. I am such a bloody idiot!_ She thought with a grimace as she tried to stand on her broken ankle.

* * *

_**a/n**: okay okay I know I am a meanie! The more lovely reviews I receive, the quicker I will upload lol almost at 400 hundred reviews... let's get them in. I love to hear back from you. Internet installed next week so updates will be back to my usual timescales again._


	23. Missing Hermione: Part I

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual, sexual and powerful equal.

Also, please do remember that this is FAN fiction – should I change the rules of the story such as using electricity in Hogwarts, it is because I am the author and can do stuff like that. You don't like it? Please go and read the actual books because that is the only way you will find anything canon to Harry Potter.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review and it's only fair since I have spent many hours writing up these stories. PS my PMs are not letting me reply for some reason so please do not think I am ignoring you, I would never do that and as soon as FF sort this problem, I will reply to the many PMs I have been sent over the past week.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

* * *

Hermione quite enjoyed her little chat with David and Daniel that afternoon although she could not help the feeling of anxiousness and excitement concerning one Severus Snape. She smiled politely as the two young men spoke of their joint business ventures in Potion making and farming, her mind not quite fully on the conversation. She also tried her best to ignore the rather _more attentive_ brother who was obviously flirting with her. She wasn't interested in him romantically before and she most certainly wasn't now. Not when she has a delicious Potions Master at her disposal; no other man compared. Severus was the only one for her. She allowed herself a small smile as she looked out of the window onto the breathtaking views outside.

"So how are you finding Caithness, Hermione? I believe it is relatively quiet compared to Hogwarts. No screaming children or classes to teach here." Daniel asked as he fixed her a cup of tea.

"I can honestly say that I love it up here. Yes it is a tad bit quieter than Hogwarts but I find life up here simple and… idyllic. It's lovely to have the time to sit and have proper conversations or to do something as singular as reading a book in the peace and quiet. It's even put Severus in a good mood and that is usually a very hard thing to do within the confines of the castle. The children and I must say on occasion, I have also been guilty of stressing poor Severus out on a daily basis." She knew that the mere mention of his name had put a goofy smile on her face but she frankly did not care. It was rather euphoric, being in love.

"I take it yourself and the Professor are getting along better if that smile tells me anything?" David asked with a grin, ignoring the rather jealous look in his brother's eyes. Besides he had seen one of their farm hands, a young woman by the name of Margaret, looking at his brother with great interest. He was sure that once he got his fancy for Hermione out of his system there may be a romance on the cards. He himself had also made a new acquaintance in the form of a pretty girl called Jean who worked in the local pub, so he was feeling rather giddy himself.

"Am I that transparent?" She blushed prettily before she took a deep breath, "Yes we are getting along rather well. I believe we are a couple now but we have yet to have a proper discussion concerning our relationship. I hope that we will get a chance to speak later on today. It seems that being up here in this beautiful location has mellowed us and brought out the best in the both of us. I can honestly say that I have never felt more content than I have the past few days we have been here."

"Well he better bloody treat you right. We may not know you very well but we know how much Minnie loves you and we like you too." Daniel said, clearly not happy that his attractive new friend was now attached to another man.

"Thank you Daniel, it is nice to know I have protectors but I am pretty certain that you and Minerva will have nothing to worry about, Severus is a gentleman and a hero to boot. He will take care of me and I will take care of him. No, I am certain you have nothing to worry about… he is just perfect for me. Actually I think I am going to have a little look around the Whaligoe Steps before I return back to the cottage. I said I would only be gone an hour but I do not want to return early and interrupt Severus while he is speaking to his father."

"Would you like one of us to accompany you? It is rather dangerous on the cliffs for someone who does not know the area to be wandering around by themselves." David said concerned.

Hermione smiled at her new friend's concern, "No, don't be silly. I will not be venturing down to the bottom of the steps. I am just going to have a look and I shall not stray too far from the top, I promise. I can't go too far anyway, I only have 20 minutes before I am to return to Severus. Thank you for the tea."

David and Daniel walked to the door with her and waved her off as she made her way back towards the direction of the cottage and the steps. As the two of them sat back down to enjoy another cup of tea they discussed the topic of Hermione and Severus.

* * *

"You know I am not happy about him getting her." Daniel said with a scowl.

"Him getting her? Have you listened to yourself? She is a human being not a possession and you knew that you never stood a chance with her. Severus Snape and Hermione Granger are meant to be together. You saw it and so did I. Put it behind you as a silly crush brother and concentrate at what is staring you square in the face."

"And what is supposedly staring me in the face David?"

"Margaret."

Daniel sputtered, "The farm hand? She isn't interested in me. She's far too pretty to look at me."

David rolled his eyes "Hermione is absolutely beautiful in both looks and personality but you still held out hope that she would look your way? Your logic is flawed brother. Margaret looks at you… constantly. Try talking to her, she is bright and she is full of life and fun. I think she could be very good for you."

He watched as his brother smiled slightly, apparently quite pleased that he had potentially caught the eye of an attractive young woman. Perhaps he had been too fixated on Hermione to even begin to consider Margaret as a romantic interest.

"I'll speak to her when she comes in tomorrow. I'll maybe take her to the Camps Bar for a butter beer." Daniel's face went from happy to concern within a matter of seconds.

"What's the matter? Nerves got the better of you?" David chuckled.

"No. But it looks like there is going to be a storm outside…"

"Yes, and?"

"Hermione's off to the Steps and… well, that's her wand on the table by the armchair. We need to go and find her, I'd never forgive myself if something happened to her and you know how wild the winds can get. I don't like the thought of her being on the cliff's side during one of our storms."

"Shit. Snape will have my head and yours if anything happens to her. Don't panic, we are just assuming the worst. I am sure she went to the Whaligoe Steps for a quick look and then returned to their cottage. It has been just over an hour since she first arrived here and she said she was only going to be out for one hour. Strictly, one hour."

Daniel gave his brother a small smile, "Aye, I suppose you're right. We had better return her wand to her though. I'm quite surprise that a war heroine would forget her wand though."

"We are all fools in love. She probably had other more pressing matters on her mind."

The pair of them stood to head over to the neighbouring cottage when a loud and frantic knock was heard on their front door.

"Open this fucking door now or I shall blast it to pieces. Where is she?!" Severus Snape's voice could be heard loud and clear.

David slowly opened the door, only to be knocked over by their visitor. "Where the fuck is she?"

"Calm down please, professor. She is not here. She left a little over forty minutes ago" Daniel said as he helped his brother from the ground.

"And where did she go pray tell!?" He spat, brandishing his wand at the pair of them.

"She said she was going to go for a walk down by the Whaligoe Steps before she headed back to the cottage. She said she didn't want to interrupt you and your father's conversations or something like that? We only just noticed that she left her wand behind… we were actually on our way over to your cottage to return it. We just assumed that she would have been back with you by now. Had we known that she wasn't, we would have came and fetched you sooner than this but we only just noticed that she left her wand."

Severus seemed to have calmed down slightly but he was still highly suspicious of the two brothers in front of him, "And why would someone as magically talented, a war heroine and one of the greatest witches to have ever existed, do something as silly as forgetting her wand?"

Daniel sneered at the dark, tall man in front of him, "I suspect it is because she was too busy being bloody loved up and thinking of you!"

"Enough of this nonsense! It's obvious that Hermione has gotten lost out there… there is a storm on the horizon and she is unfamiliar with the area. We need to stop bickering and head out to search for her. If we don't find her as soon as possible, the cold will get her. Now come on… let's go!" David grabbed his coat and left without waiting for the other two men to follow. Daniel skulked passed Severus and slammed the door as he excited, still obviously not happy at having been accused of doing something sinister to Hermione.

Severus took a deep breath and willed his anger at bay. He billowed out of David and Daniel's cottage to join the search for Hermione, desperately trying to ignore the hard beating of his heart and the feeling of utter dread and worry in the pit of his stomach as his brain supplied him with the worst possible scenarios that could have happened to the only woman he ever truly loved.

* * *

Hermione couldn't believe she had been so stupid! She was stranded almost half way down the Whaligoe Steps, unable to walk and absolutely freezing.

Severus, please find me… I can't find my bloody wand! I am such a bloody idiot! She thought with a grimace as she tried to stand on a broken ankle.

She tried a few more times to stand up but it was hopeless, her ankle was well and truly broken and it was beginning to swell in a rather worrying fashion. She winced in pain and tried her best not to throw up. She had attempted to crawl up the steps but they were too high, no matter how she tried to manoeuvre herself up them, the excruciating pain in her leg halted her movements. Apparition was attempted unsuccessfully so she could only sit helplessly where she was, she was so exhausted and in mild shock from her fall.

She had been quite happily walking down the Whaligoe Steps when it had started to rain quite heavily. Deciding to turn back to the cottage she had lost her footing on a piece of wet, slippery moss and fell head first down quite a few of the stone stairs before landing rather ungracefully on her right ankle; her currently shattered right ankle. As much pain as she was in at the time, she didn't feel any real panic enter her person until she discovered that she didn't have her wand on her and couldn't apparate whatsoever.

So she found herself in her current situation; crying, in pain, stranded and soaking wet from the harsh, freezing northern winds.

_Just fucking perfect._

She huddled herself into a small ball as best she could to try and reserve some body heat, she only hoped that she would be found before she froze to death. Little did she know, Severus was thinking the exact same thing.

* * *

_A/N: hope all you guys enjoyed this chapter. Internet on Wednesday...yeehaw. Please review!_


	24. Missing Hermione: Part II

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual, sexual and powerful equal.

Also, please do remember that this is FAN fiction – should I change the rules of the story such as using electricity in Hogwarts, it is because I am the author and can do stuff like that. You don't like it? Please go and read the actual books because that is the only way you will find anything canon to Harry Potter.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review and it's only fair since I have spent many hours writing up these stories. PS my PMs are not letting me reply for some reason so please do not think I am ignoring you, I would never do that and as soon as FF sort this problem, I will reply to the many PMs I have been sent over the past week.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

**Just a wee update in honour of Severus's birthday! Happy Birthday Rus, we love you tonnes!**

* * *

Severus stalked passed both brothers as he rushed towards the Whaligoe Steps. He tried his best to get visions of Hermione's broken body laying on the harsh cliff face after she plummeted to her death.

_Stop bloody thinking like that! Concentrate on finding her!_ His mind screamed.

"Be careful on those steps, the moss makes them mighty slippery when it's raining!" David shouted to him.

Severus barely registered David's warning as he broke into a run. His head was far too chaotic. He was so afraid that something sinister had happened to her. He knew that if he found her in anything like the horrid visions his mind was supplying, he would throw himself off the cliff. He had only just got her; he could not lose her now. She was his love, his friend, his equal… his everything.

As he carefully turned the corner down the first collection of steps, his breath caught in his chest when he caught sight of a small, curly haired ball at the foot of the next set of stairs.

"Hermione…" He whispered as he came to a standstill, staring at her unmoving form below him. Fear gripped at his insides and he found himself torn. One part of him was terrified to go near her in the fear that she was dead while the other part of him was screaming to go to her side and see if she was ok. Luckily for Hermione, the braver and more vocal side of him won out as he rushed to her side.

"Hermione! Hermione, speak to me darling!" He crouched down by her side, shaking her slightly out of her ball.

"Ow! Don't touch my bloody leg! I've broken my ankle and I am bloody freezing! What took you so long... I've been here for fucking ages!? What sort of a bloody boyfriend are you!?" She shouted, scowling at him as she winced at her broken ankle.

Severus sat back on his ankles and did something that Hermione was definitely not expecting. He started to laugh. The cheeky bastard was laughing at her! She took a swing at him and batted his arm in her fury.

"And what, Severus Snape, is so fucking funny? Hmm!?"

Severus grinned at her before he placed a small kiss on her lips, "Only you, Hermione Granger, would be stranded on a cliff side, with a broken ankle, freezing cold and soaking wet… and still have the energy to shout at me for being useless. Do you know what a relief it is to hear your voice? You do not know the worry you have caused me today young lady."

She went to hit him again but David shouted down to them and interrupted her.

"Is she ok? Do you need a hand up to the cottage with her Professor?"

Severus shook his head as he wrapped his cloak around her shivering form, "No thank you… _David_. I'll take her home and sort her out. I appreciate you and your brother's help. Please accept my apology about my earlier a_ccusations_."

David gave the pair a small smile, "No problem. I hope you are ok Hermione. We will drop in on the two of you soon to see how you are. Come on Daniel, let's get back to the house."

"I hope you're ok Hermione. Take care." Daniel shouted as he walked back up the steps with his brother.

Severus turned to a still pissed off Hermione, "Are you going to let me fix this broken ankle or would you like to assault my person some more?"

"Please fix it, it hurts so much. I'm sorry I hit you. I'm just so sore and cold… please just fix it and get me into the warm cottage."

"Of course I'll fix it, silly girl. You knew I would come for you didn't you? I would not have rested until I found you." He kissed her again before turning to her ankle and mending it with a quick flick of his wand.

Hermione winced as the bones clicked back into place, fully healed. "Thank you. I know you would come for me. I was just worried that once you found me… I'd be dead or eaten by foxes or something. I really need to sleep… I'm so tired." She yawned.

He chuckled again as he lifted her in his arms, "Then sleep my love. I will never let you out of my sight again. I never want the fear of losing you again."

She smiled sleepily as she snuggled into his chest as he began walking up the steps back in the direction of the cottage. He kissed the top of her head when he heard her begin to snore lightly and whispered, "I love you, Hermione Granger."

* * *

_a/n: Just a short little bonus chapter for you all today in celebration of Severus Snape's birthday today! Happy Birthday Severus! Please review folks!_


	25. Attempted Discussion

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual, sexual and powerful equal.

Also, please do remember that this is FAN fiction – should I change the rules of the story such as using electricity in Hogwarts, it is because I am the author and can do stuff like that. You don't like it? Please go and read the actual books because that is the only way you will find anything canon to Harry Potter.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review and it's only fair since I have spent many hours writing up these stories. PS my PMs are not letting me reply for some reason so please do not think I am ignoring you, I would never do that and as soon as FF sort this problem, I will reply to the many PMs I have been sent over the past week.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

* * *

It was a small trek back to the cottage from the steps but the woman in his arms made it a pleasant journey. He carried her bridal style the whole way, pausing every few minutes to bury his nose in her hair and check that she was still breathing normally. He was slightly worried about the exposure to the harsh and cold winds she had endured but her breathing was laboured and she seemed to be more exhausted than physically injured. He winced as he thought back to the state her ankle had been in but soon smirked as he remembered how snippy she had been with him. He might not have let her away with speaking to him like that were he still her grumpy Potions teacher but he was a changed man; much more understanding. He knew that had it been his ankle in such a state, he would have been swearing like a sailor and would have probably been much harsher on Hermione when she found him.

He gently laid her down on their bed, careful not to wake her as he undressed her of her soaking wet clothes. He bit his lip hard as he tried not to notice how rounded her hips were or how deliciously her wet top stuck to her heavy and full breasts.

"Not the time, Severus…" He muttered under his breath as he cast a drying charm on her beautiful hair.

He quickly changed her into her pyjamas before he tucked her into the duvet tightly. He sat on the edge of the bed as he stroked her hair fondly. He couldn't believe the events of the day so far; he had snogged the woman of his dreams and basically dry humped her, he had cleared the air with his father and had a rather enjoyable discussion with him and he had had the fear of losing Hermione. Only he didn't and that was what puzzled Severus. Nothing ever went right for him, his life was one big sorrowful story so naturally, he expected to find Hermione's mangled body laying on the cliff's edge. He was elated that the Gods had decided to give him a bit of luck on this occasion. The thought of losing her had terrified him beyond belief and it made him determined to never lose her again, in any way, shape or form.

"I think I shall wrap you in cotton wool and keep you in my pocket to keep you safe, my love. You have a knack for getting yourself into dangerous situations." He whispered with a smirk.

"Not my fault dangerous situations always seem to find me." A little voice answered back. Her expression was thoughtful but she kept her eyes closed; the exhaustion refusing her to open her eyelids.

"Ah, it is awake." He sneered with a hint of mischief in his eyes.

"_It _would like to be addressed as a person thank you." She snarled back but she was smiling.

Severus placed a small kiss to her forehead, earning him a contented sigh from the beautiful woman beneath him. "How are you feeling?"

"Warm, cosy and both ankles are working but why aren't you in this bed helping to keep me warm? Now that we are… well whatever we are… you should be in here with me. Shift it mister." She pouted, finally allowing her eyes to open so she could take in the sight of her wizard. _Her wizard… _she liked the sound of that.

Severus looked taken aback, "I didn't think you would appreciate me doing that. I did not want you to think I was taking advantage of your weakened state."

Hermione snorted, "As if. I just want you to cuddle up to me… you can take advantage of me any time you like one I am better and I must say that I am looking forward to _that _occurrence. Now please get into bed. I missed you today."

"I missed you too. You had me terrified that something sinister had happened." He began to strip down to his t-shirt and boxers, ignoring her heated and lust filled eyes drinking in the sight of him undressing.

"I didn't mean to. You know that, don't you? I was so terrified that you wouldn't find me and that I would have died down there, cold and alone… wishing for nothing but for you to find me so we could be exactly as we are now; together."

Her honesty still caught Severus off guard and he still couldn't quite believe that she was his. He gave her a small smile before he stripped off his cloak, unbuttoned his jacket and shirt and got into bed with her topless. She immediately snuggled herself into his chest as his arms wrapped around her curvaceous frame.

"Mmm… now this was a good idea." Severus mumbled as he buried his nose in her fragrant hair.

"May I have a kiss?" She asked, sitting up to look at him directly in the eye.

Severus's brow creased in concern, "I do not think that our current _situatio_n would be suitable for kisses. You have been through a traumatic experience not to mention we are both wearing very little clothing and I am only a man, Hermione and if our kisses earlier today were anything to go by… I cannot be held responsible for what might occur were we to snog each other's faces off."

Hermione threw him a wicked smile, "Well I am feeling _much _better and I was sort of hoping we might finish off where we started this morning."

Severus fought hard to keep his growing erection at bay when his famous self control kicked in, "As fantastic as that sounds… should we not perhaps have our discussion before we take that rather monumental, although arousing, step in our relationship?"

She smirked and rolled her eyes, "Yes, I suppose you are correct. Damn you and your sensible approach to things!"

He leant forward and kissed the tip of her small nose, "I promise, my dear, that we will resume this morning's antics as soon as we are finished our conversation."

Hermione took a deep breath before smiling at him, "Okay I will ask my questions first. Do you want a relationship with me?"

"More than anything."

"Are you in love with me?"

"Indeed I am, ma'am."

Hermione couldn't help but grin like a Cheshire cat, "Good because I am in love with you too and I want a relationship with you."

Hermione then threw herself into his arms, her lips scorching against his. Severus was quite caught off guard by her attack but kissed her back with just as much passion. He couldn't believe that she was finally his and she admitted she was in love with him.

He flipped them over on the bed so that he was now towering over her, "I take it that the discussion is over then? Straight onto the passion, yes?" He smirked at her and massaged his lips against hers sensually as he relaxed his body in between her legs.

Hermione was in heaven, "Mmm… Severus."

"You'll be saying that many more times tonight Hermione, I promise you that."

As began to kiss and suck on her neck, she could do nothing but moan and enjoy the sensations.

"Dear Merlin…" She sighed.

* * *

_a/n: I know I am a meanie lol next chapter will be a continuation from this one...as in...bow chicka wow wooooow. Yes be warned the next chapter will be rather colourful but quite delicious lol Please review!_


	26. Hermione and Severus: Tally Ho (Part I)

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual, sexual and powerful equal.

Also, please do remember that this is FAN fiction – should I change the rules of the story such as using electricity in Hogwarts, it is because I am the author and can do stuff like that. You don't like it? Please go and read the actual books because that is the only way you will find anything canon to Harry Potter.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review and it's only fair since I have spent many hours writing up these stories. PS my PMs are not letting me reply for some reason so please do not think I am ignoring you, I would never do that and as soon as FF sort this problem, I will reply to the many PMs I have been sent over the past week.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

* * *

Severus's lips trailed down the length of her neck, kissing and sucking on her soft skin. She tasted absolutely heavenly and he half expect to wake up covered in his own juices because this just seemed so surreal to him. He had the woman he loved underneath him writhing and moaning, not to mention she had just admitted to him that she was in love with him.

_Hermione Granger, Princess of Gryffindor and the brightest witch of her age was in love with the surly, sarcastic but heroic Potions Professor. Her old Potions Professor actually… now wasn't that just a bit kinky. I think I like the thought of that... we shall need to file that little detail away for analysis later. Perhaps she would be into a bit of reminiscing and role play?_ Severus thought inwardly as his tongue found the small crook on her neck beside her collar bone.

"Oh Severus… that feels just perfect." She moaned breathlessly. His breath caught as she wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist, successfully pulling his body closer to hers. Now his much engorged crotch was rubbing deliciously against her wet one. Only a few layers of material lay in their way and that thought alone was enough to make them both moan in pleasure.

His long, manly fingers began to pull at the buttons to her pyjama top, slowly popping each one open in time with his vigorous kisses on her neck. Once the garment was fully unbuttoned, he braced himself for the vision of her rounded breasts. The sheer sight and beauty of them was beyond belief and his trousers were now strained to the point of being painful.

"Your tits are just… exquisite, Hermione. May I?" He asked, still frightened that she would pull away and tell him he was being too fast for her.

"You don't need to ask, love. Do with me what you will. I am yours for the taking, literally." She whispered, grinding herself against him yet again. She smiled when her actions caused him to groan loudly.

"Keep doing that and this little adventure may be over quicker than you thought it would." He smirked, finally bringing his hand down to cup one of her heavy breasts.

Hermione sighed loudly, arching her back to allow him even freer access to her ample chest.

It wasn't until he finally traced his tongue from her neck down over the curve of her breast until he licked at her nipple, that Hermione came for the first time that night. The anticipation was too much and the thought of a man's tongue on her nipple was such a turn on, however the fact that it was actually the gorgeous and mysterious _Severus Snape's_ tongue was on _her_ nipple made her even more antsy.

"Oh fuck…" She moaned loudly. Severus began grinding his covered erection harder against her core, the sound of her saying such profanities were an absolute turn on to him.

"Such language coming from the Princess of Gryffindor… think what the magical world would say if they could hear that sort of language coming from your hot, little mouth." He trailed his tongue down her stomach until it reached the waist band of her pyjama bottoms. His hands greedily grabbed at the fabric, quickly tearing them off her body in one fell swoop. Hermione could only moan at both his words and his actions; his voice was like velvet and her skin was ultra sensitive to his hands and mouth.

"Think of what the magical world will say when they find out that we are in love. Think of the scandal it will cause… the shock, the horror of it all…" He growled as he stared at her spread legs, her labia glistened with her excited juices . "Think of all the speculation they will have about our sex life; all the kinky and unusual acts we will do and have already done to one another… I must admit…" He breathed hot air against her clitoris, "… the thought of it all excited me greatly."

And with that he began to lick and suck at her folds with gusto, drowning in the pleasure of her juices and scent. Hermione was in absolute heaven but could not keep still; his tongue was too brilliant, it hit every nerve she had down there. Her thrusting into his face got so badly that Severus eventually ended up slipping his hands under her spread thighs and wrapped his arms around her, effectively holding her in place with force. Although she was quite impressed that his luscious tongue never halted in it's attentions no matter how fidgety and rambunctious she got.

Finally his tongue brought her release; his face was slick with liquid from her between her thighs.

"Holy fucking shit, Severus…" she hissed as he sat up in between her legs, a huge smirk on his face.

"Enjoy that did we?" He asked with a grin, placing small kisses on her stomach as he worked his way back up her body. She stopped his when he went to kiss her mouth, "I want to taste you too." She whispered.

Severus knew he could have ejaculated right there and then just hearing her say that. He sat back on his knees and vanished his clothing with a simple swish of his hand.

"Never let it be said that I deny you anything, my love. Feel free to taste away, as you can see he is quite excited at the thought of you touching him." Hermione giggled as Severus's cock bounced slightly as though nodding it's head in agreement.

She had never performed the act of fellatio on a man before but she had always been curious of what it tasted like. Although she never had the impulse to try it on the few sexual partners she had, with Severus it was different. Her mouth watered at the mere sight of his hardened cock and it was oddly attractive to her.

She cautiously ran the tips of her fingers up the length of him, revelling in how something so hard could feel so soft and silky. Severus hissed loudly as she lightly drew her nails over the pulsating veins on his skin until she reached the head. He moaned her name loudly as her tongue snaked out and liked the tip of him, tasting the salty liquid currently seeping from it. He could hardly believe the sight before him as Hermione tasted his pre-cum thoughtfully before grinning up at him with the most outrageously cheeky smile, "I like the taste of it. Am I doing this right?"

Unable to form words yet, Severus merely nodded and gently directed her face back down towards his achingly stiff erection. From her declaration, Severus gathered that he was the first man she had ever performed oral sex upon and he had to admit that his heart and his cock swelled at the thought of her bestowing such an honour on him. Her hot little mouth began sucking him harder and harder, her small hands gripping the base of him as she slide her hands up and down the length she could not fit into her mouth. For a novice she was a natural at giving a blow job.

When her hand moved down to gently squeezes his balls, he almost lost all control. He managed to quickly remove himself from her mouth with a loud 'plop' and kisses her on the mouth with such fire and passion that Hermione felt like crying. To feel so adored, so attractive and desired was not something she had ever experienced before and it was quite an overwhelming experience. One that she was sure she could look forward to reliving over and over again as her relationship with Severus progressed.

"Was that enjoyable for you? Why did you push me away?" She asked with a crease in her brow, slightly worried that she had perhaps hurt him or had simply been rubbish at performing oral.

Severus scoffed and kissed her on the tip of the nose, "Love, you were magnificent. I will admit that I have not had much experience in receiving oral before but I can tell you that I never knew it could feel so good. You are a very talented witch and you have nothing to worry about. Now, what do you say to me finally burying myself in your tight and wet pussy?"

Hearing him call her most private area by that name made Hermione so turned on. It was so dirty and sensual, the heat in his eyes making her even more so.

"I say '_tally ho'_, my love." She laid herself down on the bed and spread her legs wide for him as an invitation.

Severus growled as the scent of her excited sex hit his nostrils, "You don't have to tell me twice! Tally ho, indeed."

* * *

_a/n: I can only give you guys so much sex per chapter so you will receive part two soon. Only about 5 more chapters to go! :-( Pleaaaaase leave me some reviews, there is nothing more rewarding and heartening than hearing your feedback. Hope you liked this chapter and don't hate me too much for the slight smutty cliffhanger! Thanks, Jenni x_


	27. Naughty and Romantic

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual, sexual and powerful equal.

Also, please do remember that this is FAN fiction – should I change the rules of the story such as using electricity in Hogwarts, it is because I am the author and can do stuff like that. You don't like it? Please go and read the actual books because that is the only way you will find anything canon to Harry Potter.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review and it's only fair since I have spent many hours writing up these stories. PS my PMs are not letting me reply for some reason so please do not think I am ignoring you, I would never do that and as soon as FF sort this problem, I will reply to the many PMs I have been sent over the past week.

I really hope you enjoy this one and again, thank you all for your continued support.

* * *

"Albus, why could you not simply let us apparate inside the cottage or at least let us arrive a little closer to the damned place!" Minerva shrieked as she struggled up the steep hill in the direction of the cottage.

Albus turned and offered his wife a helping hand, a helping hand that was glared at and pushed away roughly. He chuckled as he continued to walk on ahead of her, "I did not want to interrupt Severus and Hermione's privacy. Surely it is manners to knock before entering someone else's place of rest. It may be our cottage wife but they are our current tenants."

"Oh wheesht man! As if you care about manners or propriety! It's just another bloody way for you to wind me up and get me flustered beyond the point of screaming!" Her face was bright red now and her hair was askew with the highland winds; Albus had never thought her more beautiful at that moment. He loved his spitfire of a wife, even after so many drama filled years together.

As they neared the small cottage, the sounds of loud moans and animalist growls could be heard from inside. Minerva and Albus both stopped dead in their tracks.

"Are they fighting with each other or are they… you know… _copulating?_" Minerva whispered, eyes as big as galleons.

"I believe they are c_opulating_, how wonderful!" Albus beamed, pleased that his plan to get the couple together was finally working out.

"Wonderful? They sound as if they are wild animals." Minerva shook her head in disapproval, nose high in the air.

"I believe I have heard you much louder and using even more colourful language in our past, wife. Do not play the innocent and prudish witch with me. I know better." He winked at her, taking her arm in his. "Let us go and visit David and Daniel, we can pop in on these two later on."

"I never remember sounding like that when we make love… now stop your cheek and let's go and visit the boys. I shall never be able to look Severus or Hermione in the face if I listen to this for much longer!"

Albus merely chuckled and escorted his wife towards their cousin's cottage, leaving the cries and moans of passion behind them, the twinkle in his eyes as bright as the Northern Lights.

* * *

Severus rubbed the tip of his cock down her glistening clitoris, the warmth and slickness of it making his eyes roll into the back of his head. Hermione was experiencing the delicious sensation of having a rock hard yet soft object caress her ultra sensitive clit. She just couldn't believe that they were finally together, about to make love for the first time. The situation was still so painfully surreal, but then again that was what made their situation so much more fabulous.

"Oh Severus that feels fantastic…" She moaned, wrapping her legs around his waist in an attempt to push him inside.

"Patience little one, good things come to those of us who wait, my dear." He smirked, speeding up the pace of his rubs and almost bring Hermione to orgasm again.

"I've waited years for this! Stop being a pillock and get inside me now!" She growled.

His eyes travelled from her flushed face, down past her heaving breasts and finally connected with the sight of his cock rubbing up and down her blood engorged clit.

"You do have a point, you know. I have waited years for this moment too, which is why I will grant you this little favour on the condition that the next time we engage in love making, you relent to my every wish and actions. I will be slow and thorough, it will be both a pleasure and a torment for you my love, but I wish to take my time with your body. I want to learn it's every nook and it's every quirk… and I want to make it my own. You will belong to me just as I belong to you!"

He slammed his cock deep inside her causing both their eyes to roll into the backs of their heads.

Severus marvelled at how tight, warm and secure he felt. Hermione marvelled at how large he was, how much he stretched her and made her feel deliciously full and complete. They were finally connected together, physically and mentally. This 'being in love business' was a strange thing but it was certainly wondrous.

"Fuck me, you feel so fantastic!" She moaned as he began to slip in and out of her in a steady but firm rhythm.

"You can say that again! Merlin Hermione, I want to stay buried inside you forever."

He looked down and took in the view below him; Hermione was biting her lip, breasts jiggling with each thrust with her eyes glued to the direction of his cock, watching him appearing and disappearing into her again and again.

"Severus, let go. I know you want to drive into me harder, I can see it in your face. Show me how much you have wanted me over the years. I am not glass, love. Make love to me the way you've always imagined, if it gets too much or too rough, I will tell you. Please." She thrust her hips up to meet his as if to confirm that she could take harder strokes from him.

"Christ, Hermione… you're perfect. I love you… brace yourself witch."

Hermione felt her clit pulse as he seemed to take on a slightly darker demeanour, much like his old classroom persona. He took her legs and placed them on his shoulders and began to pound into her at a rapid pace. Both witch and wizard were lost in the pleasure, numb to the world outside. Severus knew he wouldn't last much longer when Hermione began to mutter phrases such as, "Fuck me harder." And "Pound into my pussy, pound into it just like I always imagined you would."

She was a wanton little thing and her passion for him was still unbelievable to Severus. Hermione screamed as he twisted his cock into her and rubbed against her clit hard.

"Fucking hell! Severus come for me!" She gasped in desperation for him to find completion. She sat up on her elbow slightly, still jiggling from his current thrusts, and slid a hand down to cup his testicles. She massaged them sensuously and continued to moan profanities in his ear. This was Severus's undoing.

"Oh Hermione, oh fuck!" He moaned with one last, large thrust that collapsed both of them onto the bed. She felt him pulsing inside her as her pussy milked him of every drop of his release.

He lay on top of her for a few more minutes, both of them trying to calm their rapidly beating hearts and frantic gulps of air.

* * *

Severus finally moved off of her sweating body and drew her across his chest, cuddling her in.

"Amazing sex and you like to cuddle? Marry me Severus, you are my perfect man!" Hermione giggled nuzzling her nose into the crook of his neck.

"Don't take the fun out of me asking you to marry me by beating me to it." Severus said with a slightly nervous smile. Hermione sat up with a jerk, looking into his eyes to see if he was joking or not.

"Was… was that a proposal?" She asked incredulously.

Severus tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear, "If you'll have me… be my witch, Hermione Granger, be my witch for life."

Hermione couldn't stop the tears from escaping, "Yes! Yes, of course I'll be your witch you silly, wonderful man. Severus, I love you so much…my gorgeous husband to be!"

She kissed him soundly and the pair couldn't help but smile at each other like a pair of Cheshire cats.

"And I love you, my beautiful future wife."

* * *

_a/n: moving a bit fast on the relationship front? Nah... if you had Snape in between your thighs and he asked you to marry him you KNOW you would say yes lol Sorry I took slightly longer than usual to update, I have the inlaws over staying with us from Ireland so couldn't get to my laptop very often. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and please review! Thanks for the continued support, Jenni xx_


	28. Drop Dead Gorgeous

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual, sexual and powerful equal.

Also, please do remember that this is FAN fiction – should I change the rules of the story such as using electricity in Hogwarts, it is because I am the author and can do stuff like that. You don't like it? Please go and read the actual books because that is the only way you will find anything canon to Harry Potter.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review and I really do appreciate the time you guys take to do it!

* * *

Hermione cuddled into Severus with a sleepy but satisfied smile on her face. She was so happy that she could scarce believe that all that had happened since their arrival at the cottage was real. Not only had she befriended Severus, a man who she had secretly been in love with for many years but she found out that he had been in love with her for as long as she had been in love with him. He kissed and made love to her like some sort of Casanova and now to top off this amazing experience, he had asked her to marry him. Or she had asked him… she wasn't really sure who would be classed as the one who had actually popped the question but it wasn't like it really mattered anyway.

He was such a different man from the sarcastic, cruel and intimidating professor she had once known. He was still sarcastic but she found that he was quite funny with it. He was no longer necessarily cruel, she reflected, he just acted more towards the 'tough love' approach with his pupils and yes, he would always be a tall and imposing figure of a man but she now found that particular side of him to be exciting rather than intimidating. He certainly cut an impressive figure and he would forever be the dour and mean potions master to the rest of the wizarding world but she knew that she was privy to a side of him that very few had ever seen before. That little fact made her proud and honoured that she was so special, so unique. The fact that she had managed to capture his heart and make it her own only made her feel even more elated. She had the man of her dreams and she was never going to let him go. She sighed happily as she snuggled into his neck and slowly drifted off into a contented sleep.

Her partner however was not as lucky, sleep evaded him, and his mind was far too active to even think about resting. He could not keep the grin off his face either. Hermione was a hellcat in the bedroom; her passion for him was breathtaking and she was at her most beautiful while in the midst of love making. For so many years of his life he had experienced fears and trials that no human being should be exposed to but he knew in his heart of hearts that he would face them all again if he had to because it ultimately lead him to where he was at this very moment. Safe, happy, loved and holding the woman of his dreams in his arms after a rather energetic sex session.

He stroked her face gently as she sleep, taking in every freckle, every curve, every perfect blemish on her beautiful face.

"Utter perfection thy name is Hermione." He mumbled as he hugged her closer, smelling her hair with a large sniff.

"Sniff any deeper and I am sure that my hair will become lodged in your nostrils." Hermione mumbled back, slowly leaning on her elbow to look at his face. The smile on her face made his heart flutter. He couldn't help but smile back at her, "You know you're even more gorgeous when you smile, Severus."

He snorted, "Gorgeous is not a word that has ever been used to describe me."

"Well get used to it because you are drop dead gorgeous to me." She kissed him soundly on the lips.

"Luckily for me, you are just crazy enough to actually believe that!" He chuckled.

"I am crazy about you and that is that mister! Get used to being complimented because you will most likely receive comments on your gorgeous voice, your mouth watering body, your tight arse and your kissable lips, probably every day for the rest of your life now."

"I suppose there are worse ways to go."

"Damn straight there are! You realise that I have never been so happy before in my life. I never really thought that we would ever actually get together. I didn't think I could win your heart." Hermione said placing a small kiss to his chest.

"I think the stranger feat was that I won yours. I never truly thought that you would be mine... I am so lucky. I fear I will wake up and this will be some cruel dream. People like me aren't supposed to get happy endings Hermione." He stroked her head gently and looked deep into her eyes.

"Oh I disagree, my darling. Heroes are supposed to get the girl... and you are most certainly a hero." She placed a soft kiss on his lips and began to trace her lips and tongue down his neck.

The room was soon again filled with moans and groans as the couple reacquainted themselves with each other.

* * *

Minerva and Albus were catching up on the recent events concerning Hermione and Severus as they sipped tea at David and Daniel's cottage.

"So they were looking pretty close then?" Albus asked with his eyes forever twinkling.

"Of course they were looking close, Albus! We heard them at it back there. I highly think they jumped each other's bones during a heated argument!" Minerva snipped, rather annoyed with her husband's interfering attitude.

"Why not? That is how we began our little affair was it not?"

David and Daniel sniggered and shuddered at the same time.

"Albus this is not the time or place. Behave yourself you old coot!" She slapped him on the arm, half way between annoyed and amused.

"So anyway they looked pretty caught up in each other so we thought our leaving the scene was for the best didn't we Daniel?" David said taking a small sip of tea.

"Hmmph…" Daniel huffed.

"Oh you are not still caught up on Hermione are you? Gods boy, David told me about that farm girl… go for her. She is pretty and smart… you just want what you can't have. You men are all the bloody same."

"Hmmph…" He said again, crossing his arms in a show of stubbornness.

"Och let's just go and see the pair of them and get it over and done with. You lot are seriously beginning to test my patience today. I am quite put out!" Minerva huffed. She thanked her cousins for the tea and stomped out the door ahead of her husband. Albus chuckled as he followed her, she never changed. Minerva had the great skill of getting herself into a right old mood at times, a mood which was almost always was impossible to get her out of without; a) getting her drunk b)letting her sleep on it or c) shocking her out of it.

Albus had a funny feeling that once they spoke to Severus and Hermione, they would perhaps be visiting_ option C_ before the night was out.

* * *

_a/n: please review... not long to go now. I may even include some super soppy happening such as a wedding soon... oh it'll be beautiful, grab a hankie!_


	29. Better Acquainted

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual, sexual and powerful equal.

Also, please do remember that this is FAN fiction – should I change the rules of the story such as using electricity in Hogwarts, it is because I am the author and can do stuff like that. You don't like it? Please go and read the actual books because that is the only way you will find anything canon to Harry Potter.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review!

* * *

Severus slowly trailed his tongue from Hermione's clavicle down to her pert, pink nipples while his other hand began teasing her clit slowly. He savoured every texture and taste from this beautiful woman and he relished that his actions could make her moan and feel as she did.

He licked and sucked both of her nipples with gusto, they tasted of nothing in particular, perhaps a little hint of the shower crème she used but regardless of their lack of taste, he loved and savoured the taste of them at the same time. He finally drew his mouth away from her breasts and kissed his way down her flat tummy as her nails drew down through his hair, her eyes never leaving his face.

Hermione thought he was strikingly beautiful when he was like this. There was no hard exterior, no sneers, no emotion other than pleasure on his features. He was a passionate man in life in general but the way he devoured her body during love making was utterly breathtaking.

"Oh fuck Severus!" She moaned arching into him as he continued doing wonderful things to her body. He was just about to begin licking her soaking wet pussy when there was a loud knock at the front door.

Severus's head snapped up, "For fuck sake!"

Hermione quickly pushed his head back down in between her legs, lust clouding her usual good sense of judgement. "Ignore it. Please don't stop!"

Severus couldn't help but snigger at her, "Love, we can't just ignore whoever it is. It may be an emergency." He stood from the bed and hastily threw on his robe, "But rest assured I will be making it known to whoever it is that I am not fucking happy with the intrusion and I will be returning to snack on your delectable curves as soon as possible. It's probably my bloody dad."

"Well if it gets rid of him quicker I could give him a flash?" She said with a wicked smirk. Severus scowled at her teasing, "He should be so bloody lucky!"

They both turned to the direction of the door as the knock sounded again, more insistent this time.

"Get yourself dressed before you give whoever is at the door a heart attack." He smirked, before kissing her chastely on the lips and swooping out of the room.

* * *

As the knock sounded again Severus felt his patience disappear, "I am bloody coming!"

He swung the front door open with his best sneer on his face, expecting his father to be on the other side.

"Hello Severus, we thought we would nip in for tea and see how you and Hermione were getting on! Have we called at a bad time?" Albus asked with a grin. Severus's eyes travelled to a very dishevelled looking Minerva.

"Well? Let us in out the cold you brute!" She snapped as she shoved passed Severus into the cottage.

"Please, do come in." He snarled, grudgingly shaking Albus's hand and showing him into the living room.

Looking up the hallway he shouted, "Hermione, Minerva and Albus have spotted in for a 'spot of tea'. Get your arse dress and put the kettle on!"

He grinned when he heard Hermione huffed and a muffled, "Go fuck yourself!" came from the room at the end of the corridor.

* * *

"So, have there been any developments in yours and Hermione's budding friendship?" Albus pressed as Minerva rolled her eyes and helped herself to a biscuit.

"Don't tease Albus, you know fine well they were rutting like animals a few hours ago. Are we correct in assuming that you and Hermione are now in a relationship?" Minerva asked with a small smile.

Severus kept his face unemotional but it quickly swept into a genuine smile, "We are to be married actually, Minerva."

Minerva spat her tea everywhere and leant forward in shock while Albus merely chuckled and clapped his hands together in glee.

"I… I don't know what to say…" Minerva finally ground out, her eyes wide with shock.

"Congratulations may be a good place to start." Hermione smiled from the doorway. She walked in with a glowing smile on her face and sat down in Severus's knee. Minerva was about to launch into a speech about how they should be taking their time getting to know one another before thinking of tying the knot but seeing them together, so at ease, so content, she quickly decided against it.

"Wonderful! It's just wonderful news! Congratulations to you both!" Albus beamed, shaking Severus's hand and giving Hermione a kiss on the cheek.

"Thank you, we are extremely happy." Hermione said smiling at Severus, the love in her eyes clear.

"Now as well as coming to see how you were getting on, we were wondering if you would consider returning to the school within the next few days. You are entitled to refuse but quite simply, we need you both. The replacement professors we hired are not quite up to scratch and I fear that the children's marks will begin to suffer."

Hermione and Severus shared a look and nodded in agreement, "Two days, give us two more days of solitude together and then we will return. Agreed, love?"

Hermione gave him a small peck on the lips and nodded her head, "Give us two days alone to get_ better acquainted_ and we'll come back."

"From the sound of you both an hour ago, I think you are as well acquainted as a pair of people could be!"Minerva said, slight look of disapproval on her face.

Albus chuckled, "We were exactly the same at your age! Don't listen to her!"

They all, including Minerva, shared a chuckle at that and conversation quickly turned to Severus's reunion with his father and their aspirations for the wedding.

Once Minerva and Albus left, Hermione and Severus wasted no time in getting acquainted again. They were very well acquainted by the time their two days together were up.

* * *

Their return to Hogwarts filled the pair with both dread and joy. Dread at the thought of not being able to spend every moment together as they had grown accustomed to lately and joy at the fact that they were returning to the school as a couple and an engaged couple at that! Their first morning back was filled with gasps, cheers and looks of utter shock and disbelief as the Headmaster announced to the student body that their Potions professor and their Transfiguration mistress were getting married.

To Severus's surprise there was an obvious wave of disappointment from the female students when his engagement to Hermione was announced. Envious and jealous looks were thrown at the Gryffindor Princess from ladies of all the houses; Hermione merely smirked and slipped her hand in his. That little move from her was a loud and clear message, "He's all mine."

Severus, however was glad that she had made such a public show of possession as it saved him having to do the same to her. He knew exactly how the male population of the school saw his fiancée, he knew she was the subject of many a solo hand dance within the male dormitories. He was surprised to see that the looks he received from the boys were not so much jealous but there was an envious respect that seemed to be directed towards him. He couldn't help but smirk and relish the thought of what a lucky bastard he really was.

Of course there was a small group of students and a few of the faculty that looks upon their union as a negative thing. Vicious rumours were spread claiming that Hermione had been slipped a lust potion by Severus, Severus had been hexed under the imperious curse by Dumbledore and forced to take Hermione as a bride, and the more simple rumour of; they fucked, she got knocked up so Snape was doing the decent thing and marrying her so their child would not be named 'a bastard' by the wizarding society.

Hermione and Severus had thick enough skin that they could laugh of the silly rumour that others believed. The most important thing was that _they_ knew the truth and the rest of the world could go fuck themselves quite frankly.

They had a wedding to plan.

* * *

_a/n: please please please review guys and gals! _


	30. The Reactions

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual, sexual and powerful equal.

Also, please do remember that this is FAN fiction – should I change the rules of the story such as using electricity in Hogwarts, it is because I am the author and can do stuff like that. You don't like it? Please go and read the actual books because that is the only way you will find anything canon to Harry Potter.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

* * *

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review!

Hermione and Severus had decided upon a quiet wedding, inviting only close friends and a few family members as neither of them had much family left. Severus of course could now ask his father to stand by his side as a groomsman and had asked Lucius to act as his Best Man. The Headmaster would be conducting the ceremony for the pair. Albus felt very honoured to be trust with such a role and Minerva had smiled fondly while rolling her eyes as Albus gushed when Severus asked him. Albus however returned the facial expression at his wife when Hermione asked her to act as Wedding Co-ordinator. Being such a slave driver in her teaching role that she was the perfect candidate to ensure the entire day ran without a hitch, regular as clockwork. The old couple were pleased beyond words when they voiced their acceptance of the roles. Hermione and Severus were overjoyed.

Tobias was particularly pleased when Severus had told him that he was to marry Hermione albeit slightly sad that he never 'got a crack' at winning her heart from his son. Severus and Tobias were keeping in constant contact and Lucius had invited him to their little 'Stag Soiree' an event that Severus was absolutely dreading. He had strongly warned Lucius that he did not want any surprise including strippers or prostitutes. He was not interest in looking at a half naked young woman as he already had one of those at home. No woman would compare to her anyway.

Hermione had asked Nymphadora to be her bridesmaid and Ginny to be her aid of honour. It was a few good weeks since she had last seen the girls, she remembered their little lunch at the pub when Lucius and Severus had been there and smiled. She was ordered to have another lunch with the ladies within the next few days, as they both just _had_ to get all the gory details.

Ginny had practically screamed when Hermione had told her what happened in a letter. Her response consisted of the below reply:

_Dear Hermione,_

_What the fuck? You were single only a few weeks ago and now you're getting married…to SNAPE! What the fuck? I mean…wow… you're getting married! To Snape! Severus fucking Snape!_

_Of course, I would be honoured to be your Maid of Honour but Merlin, I am almost speechless! A good speechless though. Of course you know I am happy for you both!_

_Fucking Hell Hermione! I just… what the fuck!?_

_Lunch on Saturday at 2pm! I will pass on the news to Tonks!_

_Oh Merlin, I cannot wait to start planning the Hen night! _

_Much Love, Gin x_

Hermione smiled when she thought about the letter and how much Severus had laughed when she passed it onto him.

Her attention however was now tuned into the ruckus going on Severus's bedroom.

"No matter what you say or think Minerva, I am not wearing a sodding kilt! Only my mother was Scottish and I know for a fact that even she would not have forced me or guilted me into wearing this blasted outfit! Hermione! Hermione, get in here and tell her!?" Severus fumed, sneering at his reflection in the mirror. He quite enjoyed the Highland dress on a man, so long as that man was not him.

He knew, however that he was doomed the moment Hermione came into the room and took a look at him. He saw her smirk and her eyes drink in his appearance with lust and attraction.

"You look gorgeous! I do not think I have ever seen a man look so sexy in a kilt before." She said in a breathless voice.

"What? You have got to be bloody kidding me Hermione! I am not wearing this!"

He was head to toe in Highland gear, he had a lovely Bonnie Prince Charlie jacket and waist coat, a crisp white cotton shirt complete with black bow tie. He wore a black leather sporran along with a 'Highland Granite' kilt (made up of grey, white and black tartan), leather brogues, kilt socks and a sgian-dubh. In a word he looked delicious.

"Oh Severus I think you look utterly dashing in this! Please, please, please wear it for me on our wedding day!? I promise I'll return the favour and wear whatever you want on the wedding night." She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively, ignoring Minerva's presence completely.

"For fuck sake, fine. For you… but I will cash in my end of the deal… you may live to regret giving a Slytherin such liberties. Especially since you never set any ground rules." He kissed her neck gently as she wove her arms around his waist.

"I rather like a challenge. Plus I shall be far too busy concentrating on trying to get you out of that lovely kilt." She kissed his neck back.

"Care to practice?" Severus kissed her slowly and sensually, his hands beginning to wander down to her pert bum.

"Em…remember I am here. Your now mentally scarred friend and mentor. Please desist your _petting_ and resume our dress rehearsal." Minerva piped in, looking rather flushed.

They both sniggered at each other, looking like a pair of love sick teenagers, "Sorry Minerva."

"Sorry Minerva. We just get a bit carried away sometimes." Hermione blushed, pulling herself away from Severus's warm, lean body with some difficulty.

"Do you think I do not remember what it is like to be young and in love. Believe me, once you are old and in love… you just don't have the energy to shag each other senseless every day." She said with a small smile.

"I am already old, Minerva and I will find the energy. I am sure having a young wife will do me wonders in that department." Severus chuckled.

Minerva rolled her eyes and shooed a still blushing Hermione out of the room.

"Moving on…" She turned back to Severus with a smirk on her face, "there is only one more question to ask about your wedding outfit."

"And that is?"

"Are you going to be going as a true Scotsman on the day?"

* * *

_a/n: for all you non-Scots out there a 'true scotsman' is a man who wears a kilt without any underwear on. The convo between Severus and Hermione was very similar to the one I had with my husband. I had to coax him to wear a kilt (he is an irish man so it isn't really part of his culture) with promises of a lovely outfit on our wedding night lol please review! Much love, Jenni x_


	31. Stag and Hen?

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual, sexual and powerful equal.

Also, please do remember that this is FAN fiction – should I change the rules of the story such as using electricity in Hogwarts, it is because I am the author and can do stuff like that. You don't like it? Please go and read the actual books because that is the only way you will find anything canon to Harry Potter.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review!

* * *

Hermione sat in a small booth at the pub waiting for Ginny and Tonks to arrive. She wasn't quite sure why but she was very nervous about seeing her friends. She was never really one of those "Oh my God, I have a boyfriend! Let's skip and jump and talk about all his bad habits!" type of girls whereas both Ginny and Tonks were. They sometimes squealed at such a high pitch only dogs could hear them.

"There she is! The blushing Bride to be!" Ginny squealed and she walked into the bar, crushing Hermione in a hug.

"Hi Gin." Hermione said awkwardly.

"Ok so I have been thinking about hen nights and I was thinking we could start here have a few drinks, then onto the Dark Harbour for the midnight strip show, I hear that Big Alan is back from holiday and he is just so lush! Seriously you have never seen a man so ripped."

"Woah… woah… woah! Take a fucking breath Ginny. I am sorry to disappoint you but there will be no grand ideas about where we are going out because if and only if I decide I want to celebrate before the man I love, it will be a few of my closest girls and a few bottles of wine with likely spells of muggle rom-com movies, ok? Severus and I do not want any extravagant nights out. We're getting married in a little over two weeks and we want a nice and relaxed road into that event. I'm sorry if that is disappointing but Severus had to do the same to Lucius. He had some real eye opening events for the 'boys' to attend and Severus had to shut him down. Sorry Gin… keep the celebration boots for the wedding dance." Hermione said patting her friend's arm in consolation.

"Oh… I would be lying if I said I wasn't disappointed but I suppose I have to do as you wish. I suppose wine and some movies could be a laugh. Why the downer on partying though?" Ginny said with a pout.

"It's not a downer on partying so much… we just don't want any fuss. I don't want to look at half naked men when I can look at Severus and believe me he is just as well ripped and attractive as any other male on this planet. I am not interested in seeing any other man naked other than Severus. Don't screw your face up like that I know you used to fancy him when you were a student."

Ginny's face went bright red and she looked very shy at her friend's statement. "Hermione, there was hardly a girl in the school that didn't fancy the dark, surly Potions master whose voice was like melted chocolate!"

"Ha… funny I didn't really start finding him truly attractive until I came back to Hogwarts to teach and the rest they say is history. Anyhoo… where is Tonks?" Hermione asked, looking around.

"Little Teddy was sick this morning and Remus is recovering from his lunar activities so she sends her apologies. She promises she'll be at Madam Malkins tomorrow for her dress fitting."

Hermione's brow creased in concern, "Is the wee one ok?"

"Yeah she said it was just a little stomach bug but anyway… you are stalling! Get me a drink and then get me filled in on how this proposal came to be." She smirked, shooing Hermione in the direction of the bar.

"Fine…bloody insufferable…fucking Weasley!"

"You're even starting to snark like him… Merlin save us all! Two Professor Snapes at Hogwarts, fucking hell!" Ginny chuckled.

* * *

"So, you have finally decided to take the plunge and you are still going to deny me the chance to throw you the stag party of the century!" Lucius chuckled, pouring Severus a glass of fine cognac.

"You are correct, old friend. You know I have no interest in seeing naked women dance for money. I have a beautiful and sexy woman at home who would dance for me naked… for free and I don't feel sordid or dirty afterwards." He smirked.

"She is a beauty and smart too… yes, I will admit that you are a very lucky man but it's a rite of passage into the married world to have a stag night! You are a world renowned bachelor and I am sure that there are many heartbroken young ladies who wished that they could have captured the scary professor's heart so… let's pay them to shake their boobies in our faces! They would be pleased of the privilege!" Lucius tried with a charming smile.

Severus looked as though he were considering it but then shook his head, "Nope. I find I am very numb to any form of emotional blackmail that is carried out by anyone but my Hermione, plus we can still have a drink at the pub and a laugh… just no bloody strippers. I've told you that I do not want that. It is seedy and against what I believe in… it would be disrespectful to the woman I love."

"Fine…you bloody stubborn sod! So who are we inviting to this soiree?"

"You, me, Potter I suppose for Hermione's sake, Albus, my father, Remus, Flitwick and I suppose we had better ask Minerva's cousins since they will be coming down here for the wedding, David and Daniel are their names. I'll give you addresses etcetera so you can owl them but remember to stress it is just a drink." Severus stared his friend down in full professor mode and Lucius could understand why so many children were afraid of him.

"I am well warned, never fear, I will respect your decision." He mock bowed and sipped at his cognac slowly with a smirk.

* * *

Hermione sighed with a small smile on her face as Severus ran his fingers through her curly hair. She looked up at his calm and happy face from her position. He was reading a book while her head rested on his lap. She had never seen him look so relaxed and her smile grew wider.

_That's because of me. He's happy because of me._

"And what, future wife are you smiling at?" Severus asked with a smirk, forgetting his book on the side table next to the sofa.

"Just this, us. We're both so happy and I am in awe. I never truly believed that I would be sitting here in your lap as your fiancé."

"Indeed it is surreal. But I am ecstatic about how things have turned out. All the years of hardship were worth it because in the end… it all lead me to you."

"You're extremely sweet when you want to be Russ." She sat up and kissed him sweetly on the mouth. "Are you looking forward to your 'stag night' with the lads?" She giggled.

"Can you not tell I am working myself into a frenzy?." He asked, eyebrow raised.

"Yes, yes Mr. Sarcastic but I am sure the thought of getting strange women to rub their breasts in your face is an exciting prospect." Her lip was pouted and Severus was pleased when he saw a small flash of genuine jealousy in her eyes.

"There will be no women and certainly no boobs in my face! Not, at least, until I come home to my sexy fiancée and she fucks me into oblivion due to the sexual frustration she will have pent up while watching Big Alan and the Magical Boys!"

"Excuse me… there will be no strippers at my hen night. I've warned Ginny so shut up!"

"And I have warned Lucius, so perhaps you could put that pretty mouth of yours to a good use?"

Hermione and Severus both smirked at each other, "Now that, future husband, sounds like the best idea you've had all day!"

* * *

_a/n: the next chapter is going to be quite entertaining... Severus and Hermione's stag and hen doos! Will Lucius and Ginny head their warnings or find a way around their friend's wishes? tehe. Please review guys! Much love, Jenni x_


	32. Stag Night: Part 1

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual, sexual and powerful equal.

Also, please do remember that this is FAN fiction – should I change the rules of the story such as using electricity in Hogwarts, it is because I am the author and can do stuff like that. You don't like it? Please go and read the actual books because that is the only way you will find anything canon to Harry Potter.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

* * *

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review!

Severus scowled as he walked through the gates of Malfoy Manor. He didn't believe for a second that Lucius would listen to his warnings, well not completely anyway. All he wanted was a quiet night with the lads with strictly no strippers.

As he walked into the main function room he saw that most of the other men had already arrived. Albus and Harry were laughing in the corner while sipping on large glasses of cognac. Lucius was conversing with Remus, Flitwick and Tobias, pouring each gentleman a drink. Tobias spotted his son and walked over to speak to him.

"Hello son, how are you feeling?"

"Fine thank you Dad. I see Lucius has outdone himself with the décor tonight. I only hope he behaves himself."

"Oh I reckon you will enjoy whatever it is that he has planned for us all." Tobias said with an evil grin.

"No strippers or prostitutes, father. First time I see either in here tonight and I shall be leaving for home." Severus's face gave no room for argument. He clenched his fists tightly in dread and mortified anticipation as to what his friend had planned for the group.

He was broken from his troubled thoughts as Lucius lightly tapped his crystal goblet to get the attention of the men in the room. "Welcome to Malfoy Manor. I am sure we are all delighted that Severus has finally found happiness with the beautifully curvaceous and equally intelligent Hermione Granger." The room was filled with scattered applause, wolf whistles and cries of 'here, here!'.

"Now, sadly gents, I have been strictly forbidden by the grumpy groom from hiring the services of lovely ladies who would have gladly let us ogle their naked forms and even get in a cheeky squeeze here and there. So, I have found a loophole of sorts and before you storm off Severus, there will be no females here and no form of cheating whatsoever will be carried out."

Lucius waved his hand and all of a sudden, little booths appeared one by one, each covered with dark green velvet curtains. Severus could not help but be a little intrigued.

"Is he going to make us confess to our sins? Those booths remind me of my days as a church goer." Tobias whispered in his son's ear.

"I don't know Dad, perhaps we should listen to what he has to say?" Severus snipped, eager to hear what his sneaky but brilliant friend had concocted in the way of entertainment.

Lucius smirked at the looks of wonder and bewilderment on his guest's faces. "Now, gentlemen before you are privacy booths. They are soundproof and sealed off to interruption as soon as you shut the curtains behind you. You will be able to exit and enter your own cubicle as and when you please. Please be assured that no one else can gain access to your personal area."

"What's inside Lucius? Do stop fannying around!" Severus sneered, crossing his arms in obvious irritation.

"Do calm yourself Severus. We must be patient with these things." Lucius purred.

"Inside these cubicles are what are referred to as 'Pleasure Pensieves'. They allow you to see your ultimate, and sometimes unconscious, fantasies played out in front of your very eyes. These brilliant little inventions also allow the views to feel physically the actions of their fantasies and also join in themselves if they so wish. So for example if Harry's ultimate fantasy was to see his wife Ginerva and her good friend Nymphadora Tonks in a lesbian clinch dressed as milk maids, he would see jus that and he could have both of them do whatever they wished to him."

"And I would feel everything they did?" Harry asked in curiosity and excitement.

"Indeed you would."

Severus sputtered, " So you expect us to sit in our booths, watching our fantasies play out and basically have a mass wank off? It is a bit perverted Lucius."

"How is it? I am not asking to watch you pull your tallywhacker! It's all quite private and discreet. These weren't bloody cheap to hire out either so, get in your respective booths, take a seat and enjoy your heart's desires." He gave the group a scandalous smile before disappearing into his own booth.

"Let's go!" Tobias announced, stalking towards his own booth in the usual Snape fashion.

Severus hesitated for a brief second before swooping into his own booth.

* * *

Severus sat down in a rather comfortable looking leather chair and eyed the pensieve in front of him. Next to it was a small booklet titled "Instructions". He skipped to the 'How to Use' section and read aloud, " _Place your face into the pensieve and tap your wand on the side three times_… like a fucking muggle magician… _then sit back and relax as you are taken into your ultimate sexual fantasy_. Alright, here we go!"

He found himself standing in his classroom in the dungeons, sitting behind his desk with only the sound of a lone bubbling cauldron.

_This is my ultimate fantasy? How pathetic._

He heard a clink from his storeroom and instantly went to grab his wand, only to find it not there.

"Who is there?" He spoke out standing from his desk.

He was relieved and extremely excited to see his future wife step out of the storeroom dressed in her sixth year school uniform.

"It's just me Professor Snape, I was just collecting the folic acid to add to the potion. Are you alright?" She asked stepping forward.

Severus swallowed with a click, his penis beginning to harden as he noticed her extremely tight shirt and shorter than regulation skirt. "fine, Miss Granger, I am fine. Now, finish the potion. I do not have all night."

Hermione gave him a wicked grin, "As you wish, Sir."

He watched as her hips swayed almost dreamily as she walked back to her cauldron. Her eyes never leaving his as she opened a button of her shirt. "It's _so_ hot in here, don't you think, Sir? So hot… I could just melt. Aren't you too hot in all those layers of clothes? Why don't you take off your jacket? It's not inappropriate… you're just_ hot_. _So_…so hot." She slowly ran her hands over her curves making Severus want to cum on the spot.

"Miss Granger… this is highly inappropriate… finish your potion and …stop touching yourself in such a manner."

He was keeping to his professional role as much as he could, he was so turned on. He was also quite surprised at the scenario he was in as he had never really consciously entertained the whole "teacher/ student" fantasy before. He was, however, very pleased to see that his ultimate fantasy involved the woman he loved… just as it should have.

Hermione licked her lips and unbuttoned another button on her blouse, "But isn't being inappropriate so much more fun? You know I'd let you fuck me… right here on the cauldron table, on your desk, on the floor, against the wall… where ever you want to have me. Please Sir, my pussy is aching for you. I want you inside me."

Severus growled and stalked towards her, he couldn't take her talking like that any longer.

"If that's what my gorgeous assistant wants… who am I to deny her?"

He lifted her up onto the desk and rather inelegantly ripped her knickers off after spreading her legs wide. Hermione wasted no time at all and had Severus out of his trousers within seconds, guiding his hardened length towards her wet entrance.

As he slid inside her his eyes rolled into the back of his face, "Oh Hermione…"

* * *

Little did he know, the real Hermione was having a similar experience while thinking about him herself.

* * *

_a/n: ok so I've decided to add a few extra chapters for the stag and hen nights as a wee bonus for you all. My husband and I just found out I am 6 & 1/2 weeks pregnant with our first child! Uber excited and uber inspired for my next story but don't worry this one has a wee bit to go yet before I am done. Hope you all enjoy and please review!_


	33. Stag Night: Part II

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual, sexual and powerful equal.

Also, please do remember that this is FAN fiction – should I change the rules of the story such as using electricity in Hogwarts, it is because I am the author and can do stuff like that. You don't like it? Please go and read the actual books because that is the only way you will find anything canon to Harry Potter.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review!

* * *

Hermione sat on the edge of her small sofa at her (and now Severus's) flat, waiting for her friends to arrive for her little soiree. She looked at the clock nervously, chastising herself for getting ready far too early, and went to fix herself a large glass of red wine. There was about 40 minutes before they would begin to pour through the doors. She bit her lip as her mind wandered and began to feel slightly hot and bothered. She tried in vain to fight off the covetous thoughts of her fiancé that were currently swimming in her head.

_40 minutes…what could I do to relieve this tension in 40 minutes? I really shouldn't masturbate but Severus shouldn't have snogged me like he did before he left for his stag night. That kiss just oozed of sensuality and just promised that he'd fuck me later but I'm so horny right now! I bet he'll be getting his jollies looking at busty beauties tonight…despite what he said about warning Lucius off, I wouldn't trust Malfoy as far as I could chuck him!_

Severus had left for his night out an hour previous and Hermione was still reeling from the slow and sensual kiss he gave her before he left. She felt slightly jealous and apprehensive about what he would get up to tonight but she did trust him and she was confident in his love for her.

She bit her lip as she laid down on the sofa, slowly raising her dress above her knees, eyes closed, imagining that it was Severus's hands caressing her soft, hot skin. She moaned as her fingers brushed the top of her rather moist lace panties and then slipped inside at the edge, touching her glistening wet clit.

"Severus…" She hissed, bringing up another hand to tweak her nipple through the fabric of her dress. As she rubbed and massaged herself quicker and harder, close to release, she revelled in the feeling of the building pleasure and the tension in her back and her clit. "Oh fuck Severus!"

She came hard as her fingers continued to manipulate her clitoris, almost drawing blood as she bit her lip. She smiled once her movements slowed, that had been good. Nowhere near as good as Severus but it was a good stand in until she with him again.

She gasped and sat up with a start as a knock sounded at her front door. Her eyes darted to the clock and she saw that her forty minutes of alone time was up.

Ginny and Tonks bustled in with a large sack filled with chocolates, wine and muggle DVD romantic comedies as per Hermione's request.

* * *

Little did Hermione know, her husband to be was currently balls deep in a fantasy version of herself, moaning himself hoarse as he spurted and spurted inside the witch.

He looked at the witch sitting in front of him, sweat glistening on her skin, cheeks rosy and legs lying wide apart and he smiled a true smile.

"You are so fucking sexy...and you're all mine." He whispered.

"For now and forever. No other man or wizard will ever compare to you, my love." Fantasy Hermione whispered back, kissing his cheek.

He smiled to himself as he thought about the real thing waiting for him at home. He was going to be married in the morning to the prettiest and most intelligent witch he had ever laid eyes on.

* * *

Minerva and Albus both smiled as they looked over the Great Hall taking in the grand decorations and the beautiful blue, cloudless sky on the enchanted ceiling. The tables were all gone and around ten rows of chairs lay before Albus's phoenix stand on the dais. The chairs had navy blue ribbons and splashes of white heather and highland thistles woven around the legs. There were podiums throughout the hall with thistles, white roses and heather sprouting from every angle. The décor was decidedly simple but beautiful, much like the relationship of Severus and Hermione.

"The decorations are oddly fitting for both of them Minnie, you've done extremely well." Albus said taking her hand and wrapping it around his forearm.

"I have to say that I was sceptical when Hermione gave me a list of the types of flowers she wanted but they go extremely well together, quite an unusual taste that one has."

"Well, that is true. Have you met her fiancé?" Albus chuckled.

Minerva scoffed and smacked her husband lightly on the arm, "I never thought I would see the day Severus would get married. I certainly never thought he would get married to one of my cubs… especially my favourite cub. And to think, he loathed her when she was a pupil."

"People change and mellow as they mature, my love. Severus had a lot on his mind while Hermione was his student and I am aware that he disliked her but I know he always respected her intelligence. It is perhaps lucky that she changed because of the war, she became less desperate for approval, less desperate to prove herself and more understanding of people and how war can change a person."

"He has changed too. For the better, I have to say. He's still a sarcastic bastard but I am extremely fond of Severus and I am very sure that he loves Hermione very much." Minerva sighed. "Imagine… the possibility of a little Snape entering this school again is very high. I like the thought of that. Severus would make a good father. Hermione would be an exemplary mother too."

"Indeed they will. Now… we have a wedding to conduct so I suggest we cease our reminiscing until after the ceremony. The guests should be arriving in a little under half an hour. You had best go and check up on the bride and I shall go and see if the groom is faring well." Albus kissed the tip of her nose and strode down the hall, his bright purple dress robes swishing behind him in a very Snape-like fashion.

"Mind and check to see if he's being a true Scotsman or not! Or I shall be forced to check myself!" She shouted after him with a smirk.

"Bloody pervert." He muttered with a grin.

* * *

_a/n: sorry guys just a short chapter this week. I have been super ill with pregnancy sickness and haven't been up to much writing. Never fear though I am feeling a bit better and promise to make the Wedding chapter super long and fluffy! Please review, you know I appreciate it! Thanks, Jenni x_


	34. The Wedding Ceremony: Part I

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual, sexual and powerful equal.

Also, please do remember that this is FAN fiction – should I change the rules of the story such as using electricity in Hogwarts, it is because I am the author and can do stuff like that. You don't like it? Please go and read the actual books because that is the only way you will find anything canon to Harry Potter.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review!

* * *

Hermione woke up with a rather pounding head and a noticeable ache between her legs.

She sat up and winced at the bruising her pussy had taken the night before.

"I'll get my own back, Severus. You bloody randy animal." She smirked.

She had been up late with the girls, drinking wine, laughing and watching some absolutely God awful RomComs. However, at around midnight her gorgeous husband to be waltzed into the room, told her friends to "kindly bugger off as he had a woman to make passionate love to" and he ravished her beyond anything she had ever experienced before. Although they were technically seeing each other upon the day of their wedding, neither really cared nor believed in that sort of superstition. Severus had been positively animalistic and worshiped every inch of Hermione's body until they both erupted and collapsed in exhaustion. Severus slipped away about 3am, told her he loved her and returned to Hogwarts. Hermione had made Severus promise to tell her what had caused such a reaction in him, worried that perhaps some stripper had rubbed herself against her fiancé and his frustration caused him to return home and use her as a 'receptacle' for his frustrations. Severus chuckled roughly at her telling her that absolutely nothing of the sort had taken place and the only woman who had made him so horny was Hermione herself.

Well not quite Hermione herself, more like Fantasy Hermione… but as a Slytherin it was as close to the truth as one could get. Plus he couldn't really see Hermione being pissed off at his revelations anyway. If anything it showed that he truly did desire and want her.

She looked into the mirror with a grimace, wine and late night sex before one's wedding day was definitely not what the doctor would recommend. Her hair was a fright, her skin quite blotchy and her eyes had massive bags underneath them.

"Thank the Gods I can use magic on this face to have me looking semi-human for Severus…" She muttered, pulling at the skin under her eyes and grimacing. She heard a frantic knock on her front door and the sound of feminine squealing, which could only mean one thing; her bridesmaids had arrived. She swung the door open to see a smiling and radiant looking Tonks and Ginny and sleepily waved them in.

"So… you look like you had a good work out with Severus last night…" Ginny teased.

"Please don't tease and just make me beautiful." Hermione moaned closing the door behind her.

"Ok so first thing is first, a nice light breakfast to keep you going, followed by a shower, hair treatment, make up, nails and the adorning of the beautiful gown. Sound like a plan?" Tonks smiled and sat Hermione down at the table and began making breakfast.

* * *

Tobias and Lucius arrived in Severus's quarters at around 8am in the hopes of catching Severus unawares but they were disappointed on arrival. Severus sat, in his bathrobe sipping a coffee whilst reading a book, looking to be the epitome of relaxation and calm.

"Good morning gentlemen." He drawled.

"You're up early… nervous?" Lucius grinned pouring a coffee for himself and Severus's father.

"Not at all, I am about to marry the woman I love and desire… I consider myself extremely lucky and think Hermione deserves a husband that is fully awake and aware during our wedding day instead of nursing a nasty hangover looking like a massive pile of shite." Severus asked, his signature eyebrow rose with arrogance and mild annoyance.

"Well she certainly is a catch son, you are a lucky bloke."

"Indeed I am Dad. Are the two of you ready to be suited and booted? I believe Minerva has set up a small dressing booth for the Groom's side of the wedding party in Albus's quarters. Go on… bugger off and get ready, I can sort myself out and you are both getting on my last nerve."

Lucius smirked and patted Severus on the shoulder, " Good luck old man. I'm with you every step of the way."

"How touching, I may vomit." Severus mumbled as Lucius sauntered out of the door in a flurry of expensive and highly fluorescent dress robes leaving Severus with his father.

Tobias stood in front of his son with a serious look on his face, "Now, in all seriousness, I just want to say that I am so, so pleased that you've let me be a part of your and Hermione's big day. I never thought I would be forgiven and I certainly never thought you would incorporate me in your life as much as you have. I am proud of you and your mother… your mother will be smiling down on both of you today. Here, I want you to have this…" Tobias handed Severus a small necklace box, inside was a beautifully cut emerald with small diamonds surrounding it.

Severus looked up at his father confused, "It's a Snape family heirloom. I gave that to your mother on our wedding night as my Grandfather and Great Grandfather did to their wives on their wedding night before me. When I left, it was the one thing that I knew would make me feel close to her so I took it... I am sure she hated me for taking it. She probably thought I was going to give it to my 'mystery woman' but I just wanted something of hers to take with me...like I had a piece of her with me. She was so pleased when I gave her it, she had never had a gift so precious. Well, never had a gift so precious until you came along that is. I want you to give this to Hermione tonight and never forget to tell her how much she means to you, son. One day you could pass this onto your own son to give to his love, you know to keep the family tradition going and all that. No, don't say anything… just do as I ask, make me and your mother proud and enjoy yourself today. I'm going to go and get ready… I'm here with you every step of the way with Lucius. "

With a rather watery smile his father quietly left a stunned and touched Severus to his own thoughts. He pondered on how wondrous it was to have his father back in his life and how it would probably have never happened had it not been for the fantastic woman he was marrying. She really was something special and he was a really lucky bastard.

With a contented sigh he stood and headed for the shower. One should look clean and sharp on the day he marries his true love.

* * *

The Great Hall was buzzing with excitement and anxiousness as the time for Hermione's entrance loomed closer. Severus now stood at the dais facing Albus, who was conducting the ceremony, with Lucius and his father standing next to him. The dark wizard was extremely nervous but years of being a spy had, thankfully, allowed him the skills to hide such emotions.

As the piper began to play "Here comes the Bride" the entire crowd stood to honour the bride as she made her entrance. Severus turned and gasped as his eyes lay upon the most beautiful sight he had ever seen.

She was a vision of pure beauty; she was wearing a gorgeous ivory A-line cut down with a large train adorned with hundreds of pearls and embroidered flowers and butterflies. Her hair was scooped up into an elegant bun with a simple band-tiara of pearls on her head. She carried a small bouquet made up of white roses, heather, bluebells and gypsophila. She smiled at him radiantly as she walked towards him.

Her heart was beating out of her chest hard, between seeing Severus looking so in love and handsome and having an entire room of people looking at her. The big day was finally here, reality set in finally and Hermione could never imagine herself feeling more "in the moment" than she did now.

As she reached Severus he took her hand and kissed it gently, "Alright Granger?" He mumbled, trying his best to hide the quiver in his voice.

"Alright Snape?" She replied with a grin as she passed her bouquet to Tonks and took both of Severus's hands in hers, ready to begin their wedding ceremony.

* * *

_a/n: _

_I apologise for the late update, believe it or not I have been in Wick visiting my family and have even visted my Aunt who lives in the magical cottage where this very story was set! _

_a wee wedding clip for you all LOL. I know the "Alright Granger?" line wasn't completely swoon romantic but my husband did that to me when I walked up the aisle. He winked at me and said "Alright Chrystal?" (my surname) and I said, "Alright Hull?" (his surname) we both smirked at each other and had a beautiful ceremony. Hermione's dress and bouquet is a description of my own as is her having a Piper play her down the aisle. :) Please review._


	35. The Wedding: Part Two

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual, sexual and powerful equal.

Also, please do remember that this is FAN fiction – should I change the rules of the story such as using electricity in Hogwarts, it is because I am the author and can do stuff like that. You don't like it? Please go and read the actual books because that is the only way you will find anything canon to Harry Potter.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review!

* * *

Severus completely zoned Albus's waffling about the sanctity of marriage as he looked onto his future bride. She was breathtakingly beautiful, more than usual, which in itself was completely impossible to Severus. She was a vision and once again he found himself feeling truly appreciative of just how much of a lucky bastard he was.

Hermione noticed her fiancé's lack of attention and gave him a subtle yet firm nip on the elbow, disguised as a lover's squeeze. Severus's eyes cleared and he shot her an appreciative look, she had snapped him back into attention just as Albus asked him to recite his vows.

"Severus, please take Hermione's hands in your own and recite your personal vows.

Severus kissed his bride's small hand and gave her a small smile, "Hermione, because of you, I laugh, I smile, as surprising as that sounds coming from me, I dare to dream again and I dare to believe that my life can finally find the happiness it has lacked so far. I look forward with great joy to spending the rest of my life with you, to one day starting a family with you, caring for you, nurturing you, being there for you in all life has for us, and I vow to be true and faithful for as long as we both shall live. I will love forever within this life and onto the next."

The entire room sat in silence, entranced at how melodious his voice was and how the love and hope he had in Hermione washed over them in waves. Hermione looked up at her tall, dark husband to be with tear filled eyes. She knew he would be short and straight to the point but she had not quite expected him to show everyone just how much he loved her. She found it hard to catch her breath and steady her voice as Albus asked her to recite her own version of their marriage vows.

She smiled at him with love evident in her face, "Severus, my true love. From this day forward I promise you these things; I will laugh with you in times of joy and comfort you in times of sorrow. I will share in your dreams, and support you as you strive to achieve your goals. I will listen to you with compassion and understanding, and speak to you with encouragement. I will forgive you when tempers and word run wild.  
I will help you when you need it, and step aside when you don't. I will remain faithful to you for better or worse, in times of sickness and health. You are my best friend and I will love and respect you, _always._"

Severus clenched his jaw in a feeble attempt to stop his emotions spilling forth in front of their guests. He had never been loved with such a passion, had never felt so wanted, so cherished. Hermione's words were now engraved on his very soul and the fact that she had said them in front of the Wizarding World's finest. She was proud of her love for him and in return he fell a little bit even deeper in love with her at that very moment.

Albus smiled at the couple in front of him, so in love. He looked over at his beaming wife and gave her a loving smile. They reminded him so much of himself and Minnie at that age.

"There is a skill to marriage, as there is to any activity people engage in. This art requires that we pay thoughtfulness to the little things as well as the big ones that are part of the closeness of matrimony.

Develop the capacity to forgive and forget and heal quarrels as they happen. Say, "I love you" and speak words of appreciation often. Do not come to take each other for granted, and demonstrate your gratitude in thoughtful ways. Never grow too old to hold hands. Do not expect perfection of each other, perfection is only for God. Make your search for the good and the beautiful a common search.

A good marriage evolves when two separate souls face life's pleasures and sadness in harmony, not in unison.

Before this gathering of your dearest friends and family, you have promised each other your love and have given each other rings to wear as a sign of your deep, lifelong commitment. May you both have all the luck Merlin could ever bestow of two of his gifted children and may you make your own family in good humour and good health.

It is my distinct pleasure to declare that you are now husband and wife.

Severus, give your wife a snog!"

Severus wasted no time and kissed his new wife passionately amidst clapping and cheers from the crowd behind them. Hermione was crying tears of joy as she flung her arms around her husband.

"I love you." She whispered in his ear, kissing his neck.

"And I love you, Mrs. Snape. I can honestly say that apart from the first day we kissed… I have never been so happy."

"Me neither. I never thought I could feel so happy!" She beamed.

"If you would all like to make your way into the gardens, we have a selections of appetisers and champagne for your consumption while we make a few small changes in the Great Hall for your night time entertainments!" Albus announced.

Ginny, Tonks, Lucius, Tobias and Minerva all began to usher the guests out into the gardens while Albus took a moment to speak to the newlywed couple.

"Neither of you will ever know the extent to my joy of this union. I always knew Severus had a soul mate out there somewhere, and who else would it be than our wonderful Hermione Granger. It was so obvious really, we are all fools for not noticing earlier! Go forward with your lives and love to your full capacity. I love you both as if you were my own children and I wish you every joy and happiness in your lives together."

Severus shocked everyone by embracing Albus in a fierce hug, "Thank you Albus. You're a manipulative old bastard at the best of times but if you were any other way… life would be much less entertaining. Now, my wife and I have guests to attend to."

Severus turned and took Hermione's hand, smiling down at her.

"Let the party begin!" Hermione cheered with a giggle.

Severus wasn't sure if Hermione was speaking about the wedding reception or the journey that flowed ahead of them together but either way he mirrored her sentiment.

* * *

_a/n: and the epilogue will be next! It's been a loooooong road to get to the end of this one but I've loved every minute of it. If you want to see some of my wedding photos, which is where I got some of my ideas for Hermione's dress and flowers you can see on my photobucket page:_

_ s1344 dot photobucket dot com (slash) user (slash)ProfessorChrystalSnape (slash) profile/_


	36. Epilogue

**Disclaimer:** All things Harry Potter here all belong to JK Rowling. If Harry Potter had been my idea, Severus would have lived, shunned the memory of that good for nothing excuse of a friend Lily and hooked up with an older Hermione who is both his intellectual, sexual and powerful equal.

Also, please do remember that this is FAN fiction – should I change the rules of the story such as using electricity in Hogwarts, it is because I am the author and can do stuff like that. You don't like it? Please go and read the actual books because that is the only way you will find anything canon to Harry Potter.

_Text written in italics used for emphasis on particular word or is the character's inner thoughts._

I really love nothing more than hearing back from your reviews. I have a number of fans who have been following my stories and their progress from my very first story but I have never heard an actual word on what they thought. So please, do not be scared, leave me a wee message and let me know what you think. It only takes a minute to review!

* * *

**Epilogue**

Ten years had passed since that wonderful day Hermione and Severus tied themselves to each other in that age-old ceremony of matrimony in what seemed as a blink of an eye. They both continued on their careers teaching at Hogwarts and spending their vacations at the cottage in Ulbster where their love for each other was spoken and developed.

Severus looked up from his book, looking at his radiant wife teaching their five year old girl Anna to read while two year old Nathaniel sat in his play tent with his building blocks, and smiled. He never thought he would have become a father, or a good father at that but he had taken to it with ease and determination as he did with most of the challenges he had faced in his many years on the planet.

He smirked when he thought back to Hermione during her pregnancy; she was, for want of a better phrase_, sick as a dog_ for almost 6 months straight. She was constantly tired but refused to lighten her workload, her stubbornness only fuelled by her wild hormones up until the point where she almost fell down the stairs after a sudden wave of exhaustion fell over her on her way back to their quarters. Still she refused to take bed rest but in the end it had actually taken Severus to _order_ Hermione to stay in bed for a few weeks and get her health back on track. She eventually agreed but not before firing a few nasty hexes and colourful words in his direction first.

Hermione interrupted his musings, "Galleon for your thoughts love?"

"They are worth so much more than a galleon. I was just musing on how far we have come since getting married and how you were when you were expecting this little terror. " He grinned at his daughter whose brow was creased in concentration as her quill traced out the letters of her name on the parchment in front of her. He was also amused to see her biting her lip, just as her mother did when concentrating on something particularly hard.

"Yes, we have certainly come a long way. It's still surreal even now, isn't it?" She smiled at him, the love evident in her eyes.

"Extremely surreal but I think it adds to the charm when you wake up and realise, it's not all been a dream. I am the luckiest man alive."

"And I am the luckiest woman."

Anna broke the rather sweet moment when she squealed in delight as she finished writing her name and quickly climbed up to her father's knee to show him her success.

"My! What a clever girl my Anna is! Did you write this all by yourself?" He beamed, kissing the top of her head.

"Yup but Mama showed me how to make the letters first." She smiled proudly, jutting her chin out like Hermione used to do whenever she answered a question right in class.

"Well I am certainly impressed. I think Mama has done a wonderful job in teaching you how to write, don't you?" Anne nodded her head enthusiastically and hopped down off his knee to give her mother a hug.

"Thank you Mama." She whispered into Hermione's hair.

"You are a very clever girl Anna, you're going to be just like me…" Severus audibly coughed out loud here and Hermione reluctantly added, "…and like your father."

"Now, you better go and wash up for bed." Severus added with a small smile. He loved both of his children with all his heart but Anna was a Daddy's Girl through and through whereas Nathaniel had a habit of screaming his little lungs out whenever his father held him, only to stop and coo sweetly once in his mother's arms. He was Hermione's boy.

* * *

Once the children were all tucked in and sleeping, Hermione and Severus lay in their bed talking as they did most nights (when they weren't having wild sex, of course).

"So, what brought on the reminiscing today darling, is everything ok?" Hermione asked, kissing Severus on his bare chest.

"Everything is fine, I just like to stop and take stock of the life I have sometimes. If I evaluate my life, it makes me appreciate and not take advantage of the blessings I have been granted. Life can be so hectic and pass by so quickly that you sometimes forget how lucky you are. I try my best to never take this, our life, for granted."

"I do that too. Usually when I watch you and the children sleep funnily enough." She smiled.

"I really do love you, Severus."

"And I love you, my love. I cannot see myself being any happier than I am right now. You've made me so happy."

Hermione sat up and looked at her husband with warmth and love in her eyes, "You've made me happier than I ever knew I could be. What would you say if I said, I wanted another member into the family?"

Severus sat up abruptly, " Am I not enough for you? You love me but you want a triad!?"

Hermione's laugh rang out loud in their bedroom, "Don't be an idiot Severus! I'm pregnant you dolt!"

Severus's expression went from angry, to shocked to elated as he tackled Hermione down onto the bed and kissed her thoroughly.

"Seriously, we're going to have another child?" He slid his hands down onto her tummy in awe.

"I reckon I am about 16 weeks, I didn't want to tell you until I had passed the 'dangerous' time just in case I got your hopes up and the pregnancy didn't materialise."

Severus kissed her again, " I love you. I love you so much!"

Hermione laughed in joy, "I love you too, Daddy for the third time."

* * *

_a/n: I am sorry it has taken me a few weeks to update and complete this story but boy I have been ill with morning sickness! Mother and baby are doing well now and I seem to be over the worst of the sickness (thank you for the lovely PMs asking after my health and passing on your congrats) My husband and I finally got a glimpse of our beautiful babby 3 weeks ago and all seems fine and well thus far. I am currently 16 weeks now and we've decided on Anna for a girl and Nathaniel for a boy (you see a pattern here). So this last chapter is dedicated to my tiny bump and my loving husband who has been a bloody saint to me since I've been ill. I am hoping to have another story beginning within the next few weeks so please keep in touch and keep and eye on any new stories I will be posting. THank you all for your support on this, my most special story. Since beginning this tale I have been married, bought a house and conceived my first child - it means the world to me, as do all of you. Take care, Jenni xx_


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